Reports – Mitsubishi ink CKD deal with Tan Chong
Although the Tan Chong name is largely associated with the Nissan brand in Malaysia, the Group’s business in fact spans far and wide across international borders and into various industries. Automotive remains the Group’s core business however, and through subsidiaries, it is also affiliated with Nissan’s sister brands Renault and Infiniti, in addition to providing contract assembly for Subaru and a number of Chinese commercial vehicle brands.
Tan Chong Motor Assemblies currently operates two plants in Malaysia; its first plant in Segambut, Kuala Lumpur, and a newer bigger plant in Serendah, Selangor, a stone’s throw away from Perodua’s facility. A report published in The Star this morning revealed that a deal has in fact been signed between TCMA and Mitsubishi Motors Malaysia where the former will provide local assembly services for selected models sold by the latter. The story quoted a market report prepared by Hong Leong Investment Bank Research analyst Daniel Wong.
Specifics of the deal were not revealed, and both Tan Chong and MMM officials declined our requests for comment. The Star nevertheless quoted Mr Wong as saying, “We believe that the contract is relatively small at the moment and may involve only passenger cars, an annual volume of 4,000 to 5,000 units.”
Mitsubishi is known to have been seeking avenues to assemble their vehicles locally for a while now, with former technical partner Proton being the most often-quoted candidate. A partnership with Proton made sense, as it would have built on the existing technical ties between the two companies, and Proton’s underutilized Tanjung Malim plant could certainly do with some extra work. Discussions were known to be in advanced stages before talks collapsed.
Currently, Mitsubishi’s line-up in Malaysia consist of the Mirage, Lancer (GT and Sportback), ASX, Triton, Pajero Sport, and Pajero Exceed. The company will also be introducing a new B-segment sedan dubbed the Attrage by the end of this year. It remains to be seen if Mitsubishi is planning to CKD one of the above models or something new altogether.
