Yamaha invests Rs5.3bln in new plant, eyes 400,000 units by 2020

KARACHI: Japanese motorcycle maker Yamaha has invested Rs5.3 billion to set up its new production plant in the port city of Karachi, eyeing to manufacture 400,000 units by 2020 for local customers and exports, the company’s top official said on Monday.
President Yamaha Motor Co Ltd Hiroyuki Yanagi, addressing the plant’s inaugural ceremony, said the company will manufacture 40,000 units this year to meet the growing demand of the country’s motorcycles market of 1.65 million units/year. Yanagi said Pakistan’s current population is 180 million and expected to reach 200 million by 2020. The motorcycle production is expected to exceed three million units by 2020, he added.
Speaking at the occasion, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said Japanese has a major stake in Pakistan’s automobile industry. “We invite more and more companies to come to Pakistan,” he said. “Many companies are looking to re-locate their plants to South Asia and we invite them to come to Pakistan as the environment in the country is more business-friendly.”
Minister Dar said government’s new entrant auto policy is very liberal. “We encourage not only Japanese companies but also other brands to come and invest in Pakistan,” he added.The finance minister said Pakistan’s economy is improving and it’s evident that the economic growth rate has improved to 4.1 percent as compared to 3 percent in the immediate past. The government is eying seven percent growth rate at the end of its tenure.
He said the country’s foreign reserves rose to $17.49 billion as of April 17 as compared to $8 billion 2014. Government will facilitate foreign investors, he added. The government is putting all efforts to overcome energy crisis and it is using all means to generate more energy. By the end of 2017, it will add 7,000 megawatts into the system.
Yamaha has come up with a new technology and initially they will utilise 25 percent local parts and 75 percent imported parts from Japan. But, with the passage of time they will transfer technology and increase the maximum production not only to meet the local demand but to export to Latin America.
Yamaha Motor Co. Ltd (Tokyo) announced the construction of the Yamaha Motor Pakistan (PVT) Ltd (YMPK) motorcycle manufacturing factory, which commenced its operation in April 2015.
Yamaha Motor formed a joint venture with a Pakistan-based company Dawood in 1975, which was undertaking manufacturing and sales of Yamaha-branded motorcycles in the country until the joint venture came to an end in 2008. Since then, Yamaha Motor has been seeking to independently re-establish its base in the country. It formed YMPK in 2013, which then led to the launch of new factory at Bin Qasim industrial park in Karachi.
YMPK, in its first phase, is introducing YBR125 model, which will be available all around Pakistan through a strong sales network of 140 dealerships. The model will be available from 28 April at the price tag of Rs129,400. The new factory represents the company’s re-entry into the Pakistan’s motorcycle market. Government and Japanese dignitaries, including Miftah Ismail, chairman of Board of Investment, Muhammad Zubair, chairman of Privatization Commission, Governor State Bank of Pakistan, Hiroshi Inomata, Ambassador of Japan and Yasushi Ito, managing director at Yamaha Motor Pakistan (Pvt) Ltd, were present at the occasion.