President Ranil Wickremesinghe opened an assembly plant in Sri Lanka’s Kuliyapitiya area, which will start by putting together a 15-seater passenger van.
The plant will assemble semi-knocked down vehicles imported from abroad, he said.
Western Automobile Assembly Private Limited, promoted by Sri Lanka’s Senok group.
The plant will initially assemble commercial and sports utility vehicles (SUVs), with Chinese brands Foton and Great Wall Motor (GWM) signing agreements to produce Foton 15-seater passenger vans and GWM SUVs in Sri Lanka.
WAA has hired over 100 employees, including graduates and diploma holders in automobile technology, and an additional 25 employees for human resources, administration, and maintenance roles. The project also involves partnerships with local service providers in areas such as security, logistics, and catering, contributing to the local economy.