Perodua production Archives

Perodua to surge forward in 2022 with RM1.326 billion investment

After two difficult years with disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, and then the global semiconductor shortage which started last year, Perodua is looking towards a stronger recovery in 2022. The Malaysian carmaker delivered 190,291 vehicles in 2021 – 13.6% lower than the volume reported in 2020 – but has set a target of 247,800 units for this year.

Speaking to the media during the annual press conference today, Perodua’s President & CEO, Dato’ Zainal Abidin Ahmad, said that this volume would amount to around 40.6% market share, based on Perodua’s own forecast of 610,000 units which is a bit higher than the 600,000 units forecast for 2022 by the Malaysian Automotive Association (MAA) recently. In 2021, Perodua, as market leader again, had a 37.4% market share.

*Perodua President & CEO, Dato’ Zainal Abidin Ahmad.*

Production target of 265,900 vehicles
With the target set at 247,800 units, Perodua plans to produce 265,900 vehicles during the year, which is 37.5% higher compared to 193,400 vehicles produced in 2021. The number is higher as the company produces extra as ‘buffer stock’ in case there are disruptions in production. The increase in production would also result in an increase in locally-sourced automotive parts by 41.5% to RM7.5 billion as compared with the RM5.3 billion purchased in 2021.

Commenting on the performance of 2021, Dato’ Zainal said the year was challenging as the country and its main industries had to cope with various crises throughout the year. “Demand remained strong for all our models with the Myvi leading the list with 47,525 units, followed by the Axia with 43,080 units, Bezza with 42,698 units, Ativa with 26,847 units, Aruz with 15,313 units and the Alza with 14,828 units,” he said.

*The Myvi continued to be the bestselling model for Perodua and also the bestselling car in Malaysia in 2021.*

Dato’ Zainal explained that the sales tax exemption initiative introduced by the government is still an excellent incentive for the consumer to purchase new cars. It was extended until June 30, 2022 and Perodua is hopeful that it might be extended again, which would have a positive effect on sales.

“Our order book for new vehicles is still quite healthy with the guarantee that the production will go uninterrupted will mean that we could fulfil the outstanding orders in a timely manner,” he said, adding that assurances by the government that the measures of containing the pandemic is showing success that another lockdown would not happen.

“With that being said, we have learnt a lot from this situation and have incorporated effective counter-measures to ensure that we will be able to face them better if they re-occur,” he said.

Over RM1 billion investment
During 2022, Perodua’s investments will go pass the 1 billion ringgit mark to RM1.326 billion. The development of a new model will take the biggest chunk of RM529.1 million, with improvements to manufacturing facilities and processes taking RM321.3 million.

It’s almost certain that much of the RM529.1 million allocated for new model development will be for the next generation of the Alza which has been around since 2009. It’s still a popular MPV, with almost 15,000 units sold last year.

Perodua will also spend RM46.6 million on digitalization which it sees as being very important in view of trends that show consumers making more use of online and digital services. This will encompass the entire company as well as its dealers and vendors and for customers, the initiative will be seen in the development of a Connected Vehicle as well as e-Manuals and more extensive use of online communications.

The digitalization move will also see the retail network being changed. Just as the banking industry has seen a steady reduction in branches over the past 10 years, Perodua’s outlets will also be adjusted accordingly. Nevertheless, physical showrooms will still exist even though online channels have been made available for communications and sales enquiries.

Upgrading dealerships
Additionally, the existing 1S/2S outlets will be upgraded to 3S outlets that provide a full range of sales and aftersales services to customers. Perodua is encouraging the small dealers to have a more entrepreneurial attitude and develop their businesses further so they can enjoy greater success. In fact, there is a special programme for this which 56 dealers are participating in to learn entrepreneurial skills, knowledge and business survival.

Exports over the past two years have been minimal due to the pandemic and as some of the overseas markets remain closed, no vehicles have been sent. However, some shipments have been made to Singapore, Brunei and Indonesia though they have been small in number. The company is interested in exports but not as a primary business. It also wants to ensure that wherever it exports to, it will have a proper understanding of market conditions and customer requirements to ensure that the products are right and can be well accepted.

Perodua hopes to eventually be given the role of a regional hub for Daihatsu’s R&D activities for the ASEAN region. Since the 2000s, it has built up its capabilities and can now handle full upper body development on its own.

Aiming to be regional production hub
While Proton has stated its aim to be a strong regional player in time to come, Perodua is aiming to become a regional hub, not in vehicle sales but in R&D. Since it started in 1993, it has been steadily building up its R&D capability which accelerated when the 2000s began. Its involvement in the development of the first Myvi, which was jointly developed with Daihatsu and Toyota, was a great opportunity to learn and today, Perodua has full capability for upper body development.

It has been given increasing responsibilities by Daihatsu in development work for ASEAN products and Perodua personnel have even been assisting Daihatsu in Indonesia in some product development work. Dato’ Zainal said that it is possible Perodua could eventually become the R&D hub in ASEAN for Daihatsu. This would be something like Toyota having moved its R&D activities for the Hilux out of Japan to Thailand (although in that move, it was to its own subsidiary).

*If Perodua offers electric vehicles, it will make sure they are affordable as its mission has always been to provide Malaysians with affordable mobility.*

Perodua EVs?
On the move towards electric vehicles, Dato’ Zainal sounded positive towards the aims of the government to shift towards electrified vehicles in the effort to address climate change. However, Perodua is still studying the matter to determine what approach to take and is having discussions with Daihatsu as well. “What is important is that if we offer electric vehicles, they must be affordable for Malaysians as that is what Perodua has always strived to do,” he said.

Perodua offers assistance to flood-affected customers with 50% discount on selected parts

Perodua sales and deliveries accelerating with 102% increase between September and August

After a difficult third quarter, the auto industry is picking up again and market leader Perodua is accelerating forward as sales and deliveries rapidly increase. In the third consecutive month, the total volume has increased by 102% to 14,160 units in September from 6,988 units in August.

“The automotive supply chain has shown improvements but have yet to reach their full potential. We are continuously working with our suppliers and dealers to further improve productivity and safety,” said Perodua President & CEO, Dato’ Zainal Abidin Ahmad.

Quality control maintained
While more vehicles are required, Dato’ Zainal Abidin explained that the increases would be gradual in both production and sales. “This is in keeping with the strict quality control measures throughout Perodua’s operations to ensure customer satisfaction,” he said.

For the period between January and September 2021, Perodua sold 119,093 vehicles, compared with 145,012 in the same period in 2020. Comparing the second quarter of the year to the third quarter, sales plummeted by 44.6% to 21,803 units between July and September as no business activities were permitted between June 1 and August 16.

Improving conditions
Dato Zainal Abidin is optimistic that the numbers will continue to improve in coming months as the country’s pandemic situation eases. “The fourth quarter of 2021 does offer a better outlook than the previous two quarters, especially the marked improvement in the reduction of COVID-19 cases nationwide as well as the nearly 90% vaccination rate of the Malaysian adult population,” he said.

All Perodua outlets are operational (unless they are in areas with specific EMCO conditions) and to locate the nearest one to you, visit www.perodua.com.my. As required by the Ministry of Health, all Standard Operating Procedures must be observed when visiting any showroom or service centre.

Perodua sales picking up but sales target for 2021 is lowered by 10.8%

Perodua sales picking up but sales target for 2021 is lowered by 10.8%

As the industry gets back into gear with the resumption of business activities allowed by the government after a long period of forced closure, sales and new vehicle deliveries are picking up again. It is clear that although these are challenging times, there is still demand for new vehicles, as evident by Perodua registering almost 7,000 new vehicles in the roughly two weeks of operation last month.

The Malaysian carmaker reported that it delivered 6,988 vehicles in August, compared with only 655 units in July. In the first 6 months of this year, before the shutdown, the average sales each month were around 16,000 units. On a year-to-date basis, Perodua registered 104,933 vehicles, a 12.5% drop compared with 119,977 vehicles sold between January and August last year.

The factory is also in full swing as it can operate with full workforce capacity due to Perodua’s initiative to have its employees vaccinated using the PIKAS program. Some 13,000 employees and also suppliers received the first dose of the vaccine from the end of July. They were vaccinated at the headquarters complex in Sg. Choh, Selangor.

From January to July this year, the number of vehicles produced at the two factories in the Perodua complex totalled 98,944 units, which was 1,116 units more than the same period in 2020. This was probably due to Perodua having boosted production in view of the high demand that had been creating a backlog of deliveries.

“We are working on closing the gap by further increasing our manufacturing output as well as further improving our Standard Operating Procedures to ensure the safety of our people and our customers,” said Perodua President & CEO, Dato’ Zainal Abidin Ahmad.

However, he said that the company has lowered its sales target for 2021. “Based on the time and resources available, we are reducing our sales target by 10.8% to 214,000 units for this year from our earlier target of 240,000 units,” he said, while expecting that production and registration numbers will multiply in September as the situation normalises.

“Our main concern now is to ensure that the automotive industry will be able to sustain itself this year as COVID-19 and the semiconductor supply shortage continue to haunt the manufacturers both domestically and globally,” Dato’ Zainal said.

He said that Perodua was able to secure enough supply of semiconductor chips to ensure production would resume smoothly this year and that most of Perodua’s outstanding order would be met within the year. “For now, the semiconductor chip supply is still a global issue and we are working with our partners and suppliers to limit any disruption it may cause,” he added.

To know more about Perodua’s range of vehicles and services available, visit www.perodua.com.my.

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