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Tawazun inks JV for Nimr manufacturing in Algeria

ABU DHABI — Tawazun Holding, the steadily growing manufacturer which is helping to build the industrial backbone of the UAE, has expanded its presence in the African defence market by inking of a joint venture agreement with Groupement de la Promotion de l’Industrie Mécanique, or GPIM, a company under the Algerian Ministry of National Defence’s Direction des Fabrications Militaires, or DFM, designed to create a new Algerian-based armored vehicle manufacturer. GPIM is the main automotive industrial arm of DFM.

The joint venture — which will see the new company produce UAE-designed armoured vehicles in Algeria under licence from Nimr — means that the UAE is now exporting its advanced defence technology know-how to other markets around the world. The agreement also allows Tawazun easier access to the African defence market, opening up new commercial opportunities for the fast-growing strategic manufacturer.

The newly-created company will initially target producing more than 200 4x4 armored vehicles after its set-up is complete.

One of Tawazun’s twelve subsidiaries, Nimr is a defence vehicle manufacturer based in Abu Dhabi which provides a portfolio of armored vehicle products to address the various needs of global armed forces and internal security organisations.

The new JV with GPIM is entering into agreements with Nimr Automotive to transfer the technology and manufacturing know-how needed to assemble and produce two versions of the 4x4 armored vehicles in Algeria.

The Nimr UAE team will also work with its Algerian counterpart on human capability training and development to build up the skills of the over 300 Algerian work force.

The JV will, over time, produce several major components in Algeria while certain UAE-made components needed to assemble the cars will be supplied to it by Nimr Automotive.

“As the defence manufacturing industry becomes increasingly competitive globally, it is vital for manufacturers to seek out new ways of expanding their business. We’ve selected DFM as a partner due to its high standards that match our own, as well as Algeria being a gateway to reach other African markets which could promote new partnership opportunities for us in the near future,” Tawazun Holding chief executive officer Saif Al Hajeri said.

The JV will produce two variations of Nimr 4x4 vehicles to meet the requirements of the Algerian market over the next 15 years for a demand forecast of 2,500 cars, with the aim to potentially supply other customers in the region.

— business@khaleejtimes.com