A line of NP 200 at the Nissan plant wait to be fitted.
Nissan South Africa is operating at reduced production volumes as it prepares to end the manufacture of its NP200 models, and the number of employees might be cut, the group said in a statement Friday.
The group’s plant in Rosslyn, Pretoria continues to build the Navara pickup range, with model upgrades to come and export destinations set to increase, the group said. However, the group has previously announced it would stop making the Nissan NP 200 light pickup model range on March 24.
“The immediate replacement model for NP200 was planned to be built on an Alliance shared platform in Russia. However, the geopolitical situation in Russia meant this model was no longer viable due to significantly reduced volumes,” the group said.
“In line with our African strategy, securing a second model for production in South Africa is a priority and a study into an alternative vehicle is already progressing,” it said.
The group said until future plans were confirmed, it would be operated at reduced production volumes and needed to act responsibly to maintain its long-term competitiveness and be ready to secure future opportunities.
A formal consultation phase to restructure the business had started, which could result in a reduction in the number of employees across the company.
Ways would be sought to minimise the potential impact on employees, it said. The group did not respond to further questions from Business Report this weekend
In September, according to figures from the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa, Nissan sold 1 284 light commercial vehicles and bakkies, compared with 5 228 sold by Toyota, 2466 by Ford and 1659 by Isuzu. Nissan also sold 846 passenger cars in the month.
In the year to June 30, Nissan produced 11 449 vehicles in South Africa, putting it among the smaller vehicle assemblers in this country considering that Toyota produced 83 119 vehicles, Volkswagen 62 966 and Mercedes-Benz 36 466 vehicles.
BUSINESS REPORT