If the rumored Philippine entry of China’s Great Wall Motor is still happening, they won’t be using their newly-acquired Thailand factory to do so.
To recall, Great Wall Motor purchased General Motors’ Rayong, Thailand factory after the latter opted to pull out of the market altogether. With a capacity to build 80,000 vehicles annually, it is now Great Wall’s second largest full-production manufacturing facility outside China.
Such a large presence in ASEAN may warm up the possibilities of Great Wall sourcing its products from Thailand for markets such as the Philippines. Sadly, it’s something they quickly shot down.
According to Great Wall:
In seven months since property acquisition, GWM [Great Wall Motor] has upgraded the factory and its systems into a smart factory with production capacity of 80,000 units per annum. This new factory will serve as GWM’s key production base for RHD vehicles in Southeast Asia. Its production will be 60 percent for the domestic [Thailand] sales and 40 percent for export to overseas markets for RHD vehicles, starting with the all-new Haval H6 Hybrid SUV as the first model to roll off its production line.Sad trombone noises.
It seems that if Great Wall Motor is indeed entering the Philippine market, they will be sourcing their products directly from China echoing the move of other Chinese carmakers currently in the country from Geely to Chery.
Great Wall Motors has sold 517,547 units for the first five months of 2021, a 65.3 percent year-on-year increase. In May alone, they sold 86,965 units. Overseas sales are also formidable with 10,079 sold, a year-on-year growth of 557.5 percent. In 2020, it sold 1.11 million vehicles, an increase of 4.8 percent over 2019.
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