South Korean automotive manufacturer Hyundai has opened a car assembly plant in the city of Matola, located in Maputo, Mozambique
The assembly plant was inaugurated after a partnership agreement between South Korea and Mozambique called Somyoung Motors, stated local reports. Armando Guebuza, president of Mozambique had said that 542,000 cars are registered in Mozambique. In particular, 95 per cent of the 45 existing brands in the country are of Asian origin.
The partnership is a private investment between Somotor of Mozambique, the majority shareholder and YoungSom of South Korea, which invested US$5.45mn including construction of the factory and purchase of the equipment needed to assemble the vehicles.
The plant has an installed capacity to assemble 4,500 cars per year. In an initial phase, the plant will assemble five vehicles per day, which will increase to 1,200 units in 2015 and 2,500 in 2016, added reports. Currently, Somyoung Motors is assembling the Hyundai i10 model and the Accent 1.6 model.
