French multinational automobile manufacturer, Renault, Monday said it is considering the establishment of an assembly plant in Ghana.
This brings to four, the number of vehicle manufacturers intending to put up assembly plants in Ghana.
German auto giant, Volkswagen, Japan’s Nissan and China’s Sinotruk hope to establish assembly plants in the country.
Fabrice Cambolibe, the Vice President and Chairman of the Africa-Middle-East-India (AMI) Region at Renault, disclosed this when he called on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo at the Jubilee House in Accra.
He told President Akufo-Addo that Renault had studied keenly the business climate in Ghana adding; “We will see if our capacity to bring our products to this country are marching with your policy and, if it is okay, we will be delighted to do that.”
“I have noticed a lot of values in the country, and they are very important to us. I hope that we will be able to concretize it in a really hard project, not a short-term project, but a long-term project, and if everything is matching, we will come back to you as soon as possible.”
President Akufo-Addo welcomed the news by the French automaker to establish in Ghana, saying it is an indication of the confidence the world has in the country’s economy and the business-friendly policies the Government had instituted over the past two years.
Ghana, he said, with its geographical location and sound economic policies and outlook, was the most ideal country in West Africa to establish an assembly base.
Noting that Ghana had now become the largest recipient of Foreign Direct Investment in West Africa, the President said Renault could not have picked a better location to pitch camp.
“We are the second largest economy in West Africa. So there are lots and lots of reasons why Ghana is a well-positioned place for you.
“We are looking upon ourselves as the gateway to West Africa, to a market of some 350 million people, which is scheduled to go up to 500 million people by the year 2030. So we think that it will be a good place for you to make it,” the President said.
Renault was established in 1899. The company produces a wide range of vehicles including cars and vans, trucks, tractors, tanks, buses/coaches and autorail.
In 2016 Renault was the ninth biggest automaker in the world by production volume. By 2017, the Renault–Nissan–Mitsubishi Alliance had become the world’s biggest seller of light vehicles, bumping Volkswagen AG off the top spot.
Headquartered in Boulogne-Billancourt, near Paris, the Renault group is made up of the namesake Renault Marque and subsidiaries, Alpine, Automobile Dacia from Romania, Renault Samsung Motors from South Korea, and AvtoVAZ from Russia.
It has a 43.4 per cent controlling stake in Nissan of Japan, and a 1.55 per cent stake in Daimler AG of Germany (since 2012, Renault manufactures engines for the Daimler’s Mercedes A-Class and B-Class cars).
Renault also owns subsidiaries RCI Banque (automotive financing), Renault Retail Group (automotive distribution) and Motrio (automotive parts).
It has various joint ventures including Oyak-Renault (Turkey), Renault Pars (Iran). The French Government owns a 15 per cent share in Renault.
