13 July 2007
Proton and Lotus Secure Deal in China
Youngman to import 30,000 Gen•2 for resale in China and engage Lotus for engineering services.
Zhejiang (China), 13 July 2007 - Perusahaan Otomobil Nasional Sdn Bhd today inked several agreements in relation to the business transactions with Youngman Automobile Sales Co., Ltd and Youngman Automobile Group Ltd Co, paving the way for PROTON to offer its products and services in China, the world's fastest-growing car market.
Youngman will import 30,000 GEN•2 CBU units and resell under its own brand "EUROPESTAR" and eventually, develop a new range of Made-in-China "EUROPESTAR" cars with the engineering services through Lotus.
In addition to this, the arrangement will also encompass the technology licensing of the Gen•2 platform, Campro engine for Youngman’s new "EUROPESTAR" cars and supply of genuine spare parts.
The agreements were signed by PROTON Managing Director Dato' Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir while Youngman was represented by its Chairman, Pang Qingnian.
Syed Zainal said these were landmark win-win agreements as it would enable PROTON to sell its products and commercialise its technologies in China through Youngman for their brand of passenger cars in a huge market with promise of exponential growth.
Car ownership in China is currently at only one per cent of the population. With the middle-income group growing in size spurred by economic growth expected to be above eight per cent annually, the car market is estimated to be revved up by 20 to 30 per cent annually in the next few years.
"We are therefore positive with the prospects and export optimisation that will result in production volume increase at the Tanjung Malim plant. We are equally optimistic of the opportunities in commercialisation of PROTON's technologies and intellectual property rights," Syed Zainal said.
Youngman is China's leading commercial vehicle manufacturer that has been awarded a licence from the Chinese authorities to produce passenger vehicles. The luxury coach and truck maker not only have a wealth of experience in the Chinese market but has also formulated aggressive plans for its new "EUROPESTAR" brand.
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