PSA Peugeot Citroen will start producing cars in Nigeria this year after it the French carmaker signed an assembly and sale of cars agreement with PAN Nigeria Limited.
In a statement on Wednesday, the Paris-based Peugeot says it will begin building its 301 sedan in small volumes at a plant operated by PAN Nigeria Ltd in Kaduna.
The vehicle will be produced from semi-assembled kits of parts shipped from Peugeot’s plant in Vigo, in Spain.
“On Friday, 11 July 2014, PSA Peugeot Citroën (Paris:UG) and PAN Nigeria Limited signed an assembly and sale of cars agreement in Nigeria,” PSA Peugeot Citroen said in a statement. “The first vehicle concerned by the agreement will be the Peugeot 301, the assembly of which will begin in the second half of 2014 at the Kaduna plant.
“Under the terms of the agreement, PAN Nigeria Limited will also be able to assemble the Peugeot 508 and the Peugeot 308.”
Peugeot will leverage a network of roughly a dozen dealers that will be capable of rapidly implementing the quality standards required by the Brand and supporting its business growth in Nigeria.
The agreement is aligned with the new automotive industry development policy established by the Nigerian government.
Africa’s most populous nation with about 170 million people, and its largest economy with GDP of €372 billion in 2013 and growth of 7.4% forecast for 2014.
Nigeria is emerging as a key growth driver at the level of the entire continent.
