KG Mobility (KGM), ahead of entering the Vietnamese market, met with its local knockdown (KD) partner, Phu Ta Group, to discuss detailed cooperation plans.
KGM said on the 13th that on the 11th (local time), KGM Chairman Kwak Jae-sun and Phu Ta Group Chairman Nguyen Huu Luan held a meeting at Phu Ta Group's headquarters in Da Nang, central Vietnam.
On the 10th, Chairman Kwak inspected the site of KLMH, KGM's dedicated KD production plant now in its final stage of completion, checking preparation status by process and support needs. KD production exports automobile modules from Korea and assembles them locally into finished vehicles.
Kim Long Motor, a subsidiary in the automobile division of Phu Ta Group, plans to begin full-scale KD production of KGM's main models, including the Rexton and Musso, in the second half of this year as soon as construction of the production plant is completed.
Chairman Kwak said, "The Vietnam plant will not only handle KD but also supply the full suite of production facilities such as KGM's body shop, paint shop, and assembly shop, enabling the market to receive high-quality vehicles that reflect KGM's production technology know-how," adding, "The two companies will make every effort to cooperate to produce vehicles of the highest quality."
He added, "Vietnam is a highly potential market where car purchases are expected to increase significantly and is very important as a strategic outpost for expanding exports to the Southeast Asian market," and "We will continue to increase global sales by expanding into emerging markets as well as existing markets such as Europe, and by broadening the overseas launch of new models such as the Musso."
To boost export volumes, KGM is speeding up the expansion of its KD business. In addition to Vietnam, it signed a heads of agreement (HOA) in May last year to supply KD kits to Indonesia. This year, it plans to expand the KD business to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka as well.