Stories Moses Akaigwe 08072100049
One of CFAO group’s subsidiaries and sole distributor of the FUSO brand in Nigeria, CFAO Equipment, in conjunction with Mitsubishi FUSO Truck and Bus Corporation (MFTBC), has established an assembly plant that has commenced the production of Canter trucks in Lagos.
CFAO’s partnership with MFTBC, is one of Asia’s leading commercial vehicle manufacturers, which resulted in the FUSO assembly plant at Amuwo-Odofin, along the Apapa-Oshodi Expressway, Lagos, is regarded in the industry as a milestone in line with the national automotive policy.
The facility has taken off with the production of the market leader, the Canter, but other truck series in the FUSO family are expected to roll out of the assembly line later.
At the colourful inauguration on Thursday, guests, including the Minister of Industry Trade and Investment and special guest of honour, Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah, who was represented by the director-general of the Nigerian Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC), Mr. Jelani Aliyu, hailed CFAO for venturing into the local assembly of the popular FUSO.
The event was graved by foreign dignitaries, representing partners in the industry, led by the director of international sales operations, Daimler Trucks Asia, Mr. Ilan Elad, and chairman and CEO of CFAO Group, Mr. Richard Bielle, while chairman of CFAO Nigeria Plc, Mr. Gbenga Oyebode, and CFAO country delegate in Nigeria, Mr. Thomas Pelletier, played host to numerous government functionaries and captains of industry that were present.
The plant is expected to produce up to 500 units a year. The Canter truck has segment advantage in the areas of reliability, ruggedness, low maintenance cost and particularly meets the economic needs and requirements of the Nigerian user.
The Nigerian FUSO plant shares MFTBC’s stringent quality standards and is the second FUSO truck plant in Africa.
With the launching of the plant, CFAO and MFTBC are targeting additional growth in the emerging Nigerian market by leveraging on their strengths, expertise, and efficient network.
The local assembly plant greatly boosts job creation and local content development, as indigenous contractors were extensively engaged from the design to the construction stages of the plant in addition to employment of Nigerian engineers, technicians and interns in acquiring qualitative competency.
According to Bielle: “The inauguration of this new FUSO plant coincides with the celebration of CFAO’s 115th anniversary in Nigeria. CFAO Nigeria Plc is present in Nigeria accros the mobility, healthcare and consumer goods sectors.”
This latest investment complements CFAO’s production plants, NIPEN (BIC pens and crates) and Yamaha motorcycles, in Nigeria.