KIA Nigeria assures of capacity to meet local demand

One of the country’s new generation auto makers, Kia Motors Nigeria Ltd, has re-affirmed its commitment to the production of a wide range of vehicles that meet the needs of the local market in terms of volume and quality standards.
The company which is still basking in the recent successful roll-out of the latest models of the Sportage, Optima and Sorento, amongst others, at its United Vehicle Assembly Ltd {UVAL} in Isolo, Lagos, said the made-in-Nigeria KIA cars also have the advantage of competitive pricing.
Reviewing the auto market recently, the Marketing Manager of Kia Motors Nigeria, Olawale Jimoh, acknowledged that economic challenges have resulted in a sharp decline in consumer buying power with adverse effects on the auto manufacturing sector, even as policy makers intensify efforts to ameliorate the situation.
He, however, added that as an advocate of a sound automotive policy and a major stakeholder in the industrialisation of the economy, Kia Motors Nigeria has continued to produce cars from its plant in Lagos regardless of the economic challenges. The UVAL plant was commissioned in 2014 with capacity to produce 27, 000 Kia passenger cars and light commercial vehicles of different models.
“With an installed capacity to produce 27,000 cars per annum, it is evident that Kia Motors Nigeria is committed to meeting the local demands”, Jimoh stressed, disclosing that since establishing the assembly plant, the company had localised the production of almost all its cars in the country.
According to him, the commitment to made-in-Nigeria is not only in consonance with government’s policy framework midwifed by the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC), but also in line with the auto maker’s goal of making the country a manufacturing hub of automobiles in sub-Saharan Africa.
The Kia Marketing Manager further remarked: “The present economic challenges can be daunting, but the company remains undeterred and committed to strengthening the nation’s economy through the automobile industry. Since the inception of its plant’s operations, all Kia cars are produced locally and are produced to the exact standard of the brand’s global quality.
“Kia’s investments in the country are also clear pointers to this commitment. With showrooms spread across the states in all the regions of the nation, the company has taken its cars to the hinterlands, bringing it closer to teeming customers. Equally supportive are Kia’s after-sales service centres which remain some of the best in the industry with quality service delivery to the brand’s customers.”
He assured that with the combined capacities of Kia plant and those of other auto makers that have been encouraged by the auto policy to establish assembly facilities, the domestic auto industry is well positioned to meet the demands of the local market and the neighbouring countries.
“Therefore, a return to unregulated importation of used cars will recline the trajectory of development so far noticeable the industry. The auto policy {as enshrined in the Nigerian Automotive Industry Development Plan (NAIDP} by the NADDC has led to the setting up of auto assembly plants to supply the vehicular requirements of the nation, an initiative many applauded as a move towards economic industrialisation.

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