Stellantis FB
South Africa could have another international carmaker setting up shop in one of the Special Economic Zones.
On Wednesday, global automaker Stellantis concluded a Memorandum of Understanding with the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, and the Industrial Development Corporation in Pretoria on Wednesday.
It was signed by DTIC Minister, Ebrahim Patel, IDC CEO, TP Nchoncho, Stellantis Middle East and Africa Chief Operating Officer, Samir Cherfan, and the company's SA MD, Leslie Ramsoomar.
According to a statement, the manufacturing plant is planned for set up in a South African Special Economic Zone, and the aim is to complete the project by 2025.
"I am pleased that Stellantis is looking to South Africa to expand its manufacturing footprint," said Minister Patel.
He said the company "is a large global automaker, with a range of well-known brands" and South Africa is a great investment destination with significant car-making capacity.
"We look forward to working closely with Stellantis to enable the company to set up a plant that will expand our manufacturing base and create local jobs," Patel said.
"This is an important step in our Dare Forward 2030 strategic plan towards strengthening our leadership in the Middle East and Africa region and becoming a major player in South Africa," said Cherfan.
"The manufacturing site in South Africa will be a new building block in our industrialization strategy that includes the plan to sell one million vehicles in the region by 2030 with 70% regional production autonomy and will bring us closer to our customer's needs in the region."
Stellantis N.V. is a multinational automotive manufacturing corporation formed in 2021 on the basis of a 50–50 cross-border merger between the Italian-American conglomerate Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and the French PSA Group.
