Volvo Group to build $24m truck assembly plant in Kenya

Sweden’s Volvo Group is planning to establish a Volvo Trucks assembly plant at the cost of $24m in the port city of Mombasa, Kenya, with the aim of expanding the company’s truck business in the East African region.

The plant will be built in partnership with NECST Motors, the exclusive importers of Volvo trucks in the Eastern African region, and will represent Volvo’s third assembly plant in Africa after plants in Morocco and South Africa.

The Volvo Group has a total of 15 truck manufacturing plants worldwide, and through its plants in Africa, currently maintains a 20% market share in Morocco and 18% market share in South Africa.

Through the project in Kenya, Volvo hopes to win a 20% market share in the region within three to five years. With an initial production capacity of 500 units per year, the Mombasa plant is scheduled for completion in Q1 2018.

Claes Nilsson, president of Volvo Trucks, noted: “There is a significant potential for the premium truck business as regional economies grow, infrastructure investments expand and the business environment remains investment friendly.”

He added that Volvo Trucks has been active in East Africa for the past three decades.

Italian truck brand Iveco also recently announced a partnership with the Nairobi-based Global Motors Centre (GMC), a part of the group TransAfrica Motors, to expand its Africa & Middle East operations into East Africa.

From March, GMC has taken responsible for the assembly and distribution of the Iveco truck brand’s full product range, including its Daily, Eurocargo and Trakker trucks, across the East Africa region.

The move will help consolidate Iveco’s position in the region, where it has been established since the 1970s, with a strong presence in markets such as Ethiopia through a local joint venture named AMCE.