Kewalram Chanrai Group Launches First Truck Assembled in Nigeria

By Bennett Oghifo

Kewalram Chanrai Group has inaugurated its Automobiles Manufacturing Hub and has rolled out its First Foton Daimler AUMAN Truck assembled in Nigeria.

The event, which took place at the assembly plant at the Oshodi-Apapa expressway, was attended by the Group Chairman, Kewalram Chanrai Group, Mr. N.G. Chanrai; Group Managing Director, Kewalram Chanrai Group, Mr. Siva Subramanian; Deputy Managing Director, Kewalram Chanrai Group, Mr. Victor Eburajolo; Director for Africa, Foton International, Mr. Mike Ma; and Director Policy & Planning, National Automotive Development Council, Mr. Luqman Mamudu, among other distinguished personalities.

The deputy Managing Director, Kewalram Chanrai Group, Mr. Victor Eburajolo said Kewalram Chanrai Group of companies was a diverse enterprise with global presence and distribution that boasts a history spanning more than 150 years.

Eburajolo said, “The Kewalram Chanrai Group, although made up of many different business entities, has one single purpose – the determination to deliver the best end-to-end products and services to our clients, whilst adding value to their respective businesses.

“Africa has been a key focus area for the Kewalram Chanrai Group for over a century. Over the last several decades, Kewalram and Chanrai have become household names in the African Market.

Kewalram Chanrai Group’s division Africa Ventures is a supply chain and distribution company spread across key African markets and operating in five focused verticals covering four critical sectors of the economy – Agriculture, Food, Healthcare and Transportation.”

The company, he said was present in Nigeria, Republic of Benin, Ghana, Cameroon. Ivory Coast, Kenya, Malawi and South Africa and is headquartered in Dubai. Other existing and new African markets are serviced through the existing network in Africa and Middle East.

On the Automobile Assembly Hub, he said “In compliance with the New Auto Policy of Federal Government of Nigeria Kewalram Chanrai Group started work towards setting up an Automobiles Manufacturing Hub in 2014.”

The Automobiles Manufacturing Hub is locates at Afprint Premises. Isolo in Lagos and covers 10,000 sq meters of covered area for assembly facilities with more than 6,000 sq meters of open area for road tests and offloading of the SKD kits for vehicles for the various brands under its umbrella.

He said the Automobiles Manufacturing Hub has started the assembly with Foton Daimler AUMAN Trucks followed by Foton View Minibuses and JMC Light Duty Trucks.

The Automobiles Manufacturing Hub, he said has three separate sections for assembly of vehicles: Light, Medium & Heavy Duty trucks assembly zone; Cars, Pickup and Minibus assembly zone

Two wheelers and Three wheelers assembly zone.

The Assembly zones are equipped with pneumatic lines with nut runners, vehicle lifts, Shower testing facility and Testing equipments as required for that vehicles being assembled in that particular zone.

Automobiles Manufacturing Hub has the annual capacity to assemble; 12000 units of Trucks; 30,000 units of cars and minibuses; 36,000 units of Three Wheelers; 120,000 units of Two wheelers.

The Automobiles Manufacturing hub meets the safety and quality standards adopted by vehicle manufacturing units for similar products.