Mr. M
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HONG KONG (MarketWatch) - Europe's largest automaker, Volkswagen AG, is holding talks with several groups to secure an assembly plant in Southeast Asia as part of an expansion plan to keep up with booming demand in the region, according to media reports Friday.
Volkswagen Group Malaysia Managing Director Axel Barth said discussions were ongoing with several parties, but refused to give details, a Malaysian daily newspaper, the Star, reported in its online edition.
Barth said the threshold for a tie-up with local partners would be markets in which annual sales exceeded 1,000 vehicles, Associated Press said, citing a story in the online edition of New Straits Times.
He said after identifying a partner it could take up to two years before vehicle production gets underway, according to the AP report. Earlier this year, Volkswagen rejected a possible tie-up with Malaysian national carmaker Proton after the groups were unable to resolve issues of management control, according to the AP story.
European automakers are attracted to Proton because it has spare capacity to build cars and it gives them a chance to break into Southeast Asia's growing auto market, historically dominated by Japanese rivals, according to AP.
Talks between the automakers were restarted after the Malaysian government said last month it would consider letting Volkswagen take a majority stake in Proton's manufacturing operations, AP reported. The proposed ownership arrangement would enable Proton control over sales and distribution while Volkswagen could have access to Proton's assembly lines, the report said.
Malaysia's state investment arm Khazanah Nasional owns 43% of Proton, according to AP. The Malaysian automaker reported a loss of $69.5 million in the quarter ending Sept. 30.
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/story.aspx?guid=%7B61B8EFE4%2DF526%2D41DC%2D887D%2D8EBA1D3214F9%7D&dist=rss
Volkswagen Group Malaysia Managing Director Axel Barth said discussions were ongoing with several parties, but refused to give details, a Malaysian daily newspaper, the Star, reported in its online edition.
Barth said the threshold for a tie-up with local partners would be markets in which annual sales exceeded 1,000 vehicles, Associated Press said, citing a story in the online edition of New Straits Times.
He said after identifying a partner it could take up to two years before vehicle production gets underway, according to the AP report. Earlier this year, Volkswagen rejected a possible tie-up with Malaysian national carmaker Proton after the groups were unable to resolve issues of management control, according to the AP story.
European automakers are attracted to Proton because it has spare capacity to build cars and it gives them a chance to break into Southeast Asia's growing auto market, historically dominated by Japanese rivals, according to AP.
Talks between the automakers were restarted after the Malaysian government said last month it would consider letting Volkswagen take a majority stake in Proton's manufacturing operations, AP reported. The proposed ownership arrangement would enable Proton control over sales and distribution while Volkswagen could have access to Proton's assembly lines, the report said.
Malaysia's state investment arm Khazanah Nasional owns 43% of Proton, according to AP. The Malaysian automaker reported a loss of $69.5 million in the quarter ending Sept. 30.
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/story.aspx?guid=%7B61B8EFE4%2DF526%2D41DC%2D887D%2D8EBA1D3214F9%7D&dist=rss
