14th - 16th May 2024

Tag: Nigerian Automotive news

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N1.8trn of US used vehicles imported to Nigeria in 6 years

 

 

 

Director General of NITT sits down with Transport Day

Director General of NITT sits down with Transport Day

NITT’s ( Nigerian Institute of Transport Technology) Director General sat down with Transport Day at the NITT headquarters in Kaduna state to talk about Nigeria’s Transport and Logistics training and research institute. Topics of discussion between Dr Bayero Salih Farah (Director General) and Transport Day included issues like the manpower development, national research efforts and consultancy services. 

As you have been the DG for over 2 years, what progression has been made?

During a retreat ion 2019, council, management and stakeholders sat down to make several decisions. Based on those decisions, we have been making changes in three areas. To have the infrastructure and facilitate our activities, realign our programmes to the needs of Nigeria today and finally to expand on our current human resources, employing and training new staff to ensure we can deliver the institutes mandate.

I have seen a report that you said in 5 years you’ve trained 6000 people, how have you managed this?

So, our previous programmes have either been long or short term, including diploma courses, certificate courses, advanced diploma courses, postgraduate and Master programmes. We have been using these for a long time, however more recently we looked into doing more and looked at industry and international best practices and how we could put these in place. We followed process by approaching the National Board for Technical Education, for approval and 5 were approved into the National Innovation Diploma Programme in 2021, then in 2022, 6 have been added under National and Higher National Diploma levels. The National Innovation Diploma Programme began with 80 students and the other two should be starting in January 2023. After following all pre procedures and we have gotten them listed under the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board, we are ready to begin them this month.

Is there the workforce to run these programmes?

Adding personnel with bachelors and masters degrees, we have increased manpower in various fields, so yes.

Are there any main challenges?

The number one obstacle is finance, other than that is awareness across the industry. Making people understand that training is imperative is difficult, we have attempted this by showing what impact we can have throughout the automotive industry. We also have the challenge of the enabling Act. The one we currently work with was created 36 years ago, with a lot of changes happening since and it needs reviewing and amending to fit with current affairs and logistics in the transport industry.

The bill raised at the National Assembly, what is happening with it?

It has undergone first and second readings in the House of Representatives, it has been through public hearing, we are now at the stage of approval from the House of Representatives, after which it goes to the Senate. Our stakeholders can be thanked for their utmost support in this.

I have seen one of the NITT training centres  at Ekiti State. So apart from Ekiti, do you have any others?

There are two kinds of training centres; the outreach learning centres are in Abuja, Lagos, Port Harcourt, Ebonyi, Gombe Kano State and Katsina State, with us building another in Makurdi, Benue State. The second kind are the driver development centres, the programme has started in six geopolitical zones. We have started one here in Zaria, one in Ilorin and the last in Ughelli, Delta State. Once these are completely up and running, we will move onto another three.

In terms of driving license centres, isn’t it the NITT’s responsibility to certify driving schools? As you are leaving that responsibility with FRSC.

We have seen issues with driver training, licensing and development throughout the country, so we aren’t not taking responsibility, as much as re strategising to ensure Nigeria gets the best practice. This is why we have ventured into driver training with our centres, so that we can encourage and facilitate safe practice throughout the country. We are working alongside the Federal Road Safety Corps, and Driving School Proprietors and Associations to achieve this.

During your recent work visit to Lagos State Government, how far did talks go about Transport Data collation?

The Lagos State Government are good partners with us. We recapped all that Lagos State has achieved with the Commissioner, and they are much further ahead than the rest of Nigeria with modern systems for traffic. We have introduced our effort to achieve a National Integrated Data System for the Nigeria Transport sector, and we understand what the state government needs to do and what NITT is doing.

Is the National Integrated Data System live now?

We have begun works on it yes, we are beginning by establishing the infrastructure that will be enable us to gather data operations of the system across all the modes of transport. We are setting gantries on some highways in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Works. Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Abuja-Lokoja Highway, Kaduna City and Basawa road here. The gantries will be equipped with cameras to capture vehicle traffic movement in real-time and twenty four hours a day. We would like these facilities nation wide, with a central location monitoring the traffic across the Nigeria highways all at once that the state governments can tap into to monitor. The TMC’s will be linked to an intelligent centre we are establishing here in Zaria.

What is the NITT’s contribution to National Development?

NITT has trained thousands on Nigerians in operations, engineering and managing transport, some of these trainees becoming experts and leaders within the industry. After we began, universities and polytechnics started running transport programmes. We’ve also contributed in the policies aspect within governments and agencies.

Source: Transport Day, January 2023.

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Chinese Embassy reaffirms plans for automobile industry innovation in Nigeria

Cui Jianchun who is the Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria has confirmed China’s will to provide support for additions like the newly built GAC auto assembly plant in Lagos. He visited the site and stated that partnerships like these proved the fulfilment of the “China-Africa bilateral industrial capacity cooperation pact with Nigeria.” Cui toured the assembly factory with Mohammad Tunde Mukaila (Nigerian Minister of Foreign Affairs representative) and other government and Chinese embassy officials. They were impressed by the facility, being a joint venture agreement between Lagos State Government and CIG Motors Co Limited.

It can be made known that before this particular partnership, Nigeria’s automotive industry has been stagnant and unsteady due to inconsistent government policies regarding investments for the sector, for both avenues including physical and importation policies. This caused the influx of used vehicles being two thirds of the road users.

Chief Diana Chen, the Chairman of CIG Motors, has that CIG carefully studied the automobile market with key stakeholders to join up with, purely with the goal to rebuild the sector, starting with the world class assembly plant in Nigeria, which will produce over 5,000 vehicles annually.

This partnership was sealed in December 2019 by the chairman’s of GAC Motors Group, Choice International Group and the Governer of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo Olu.

Since July 2021, when the project was approved locally, and construction starting in October 2021, the industrial area covers a total of 35,000 square meters, and the automobile production line covers an area of 4,800 square meters. The full construction and installation of machinery took under 7 months from start to finish and gave local employees hands on vocational training and work with world-class engineers overseeing the build.

CIG said “this reaffirms the credibility and commitment of CIG Motors towards the sustainable economic development of the nation.”

GAC Motors has not only got plans to keep up with the current demand for automobiles, but sees a future where Nigeria becomes a main player in eco-friendly production going into electric vehicle development.

“This will further contribute to the nation’s strategy to run a non-oil economy in the near future, as well as boost foreign exchange policy. The current Assembly plant is projected to double production within five years, creating thousands of jobs in the process, while serving as a vocational training institute for mechanically inclined young Nigerians who seek to pursue a career in mechatronics,” Chen said.

Source:  Guardian, November 2022

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Locally built Mini-Cars revealed as new Taxi Service Vehicles

Africar (Vasco Technology Solutions Limited) have launched a new taxi service alongside the NADDC.

115 cars have been unveiled by Otunba Niyi Adebayo (Minister of Trade and Industry) produced in Nigeria.

The Stallion Groups newest platform,  Africar will not only create jobs but also offer reasonably priced trips, this could revolutionise the transport sector in Nigeria.

The director general of the NADDC is of the opinion that every type of person is to benefit from the launch; tourists, employees, visitors, students and the general community alike. It will make travel to the centre from all different suburban sectors an easy commute. He also said that the NADDC is promoting cutting-edge technology and always putting local automotive manufacture at the forefront of their projects.

The vehicles were all built at the Von Plant of Stallion Group in Lagos said Sahil Vaswani, the CEO of Africar, who also spoke. The Bajaj Qute cars have been deliberately manufactured for the taxi service by the firm and the NADDC, and will expand to other states in the future.

“This car is environmentally benign, with 50% fewer carbon emissions than the ordinary car”, he claimed. It was built in Nigeria by Nigerians.

Source:  Abdas, September 2022

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NADDC apparently abandoned multi billion Naira land and equipment

Mr Luqman Mamudu a former acting Director-General of the National Automotive Design and Development Council has stated that a multi-billion naira land and imported equipment for projects across the country are sat rotting away.

This was what he portrayed in Abuja where chief executive officers of auto companies and other stakeholders called for a review of the Finance Act, which would make it harder for the local auto assemblers to compete against sellers for fully finished vehicles that had been imported.

At the Auto CEOs Forum, the discussion was held as an interactive session between some big names. The heads of different government agencies, the likes of Nigeria Customs Service, Bureau of Public Procurement and National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, National Bureau of Statistics, National Automotive Design and Development Council and Ministry of Industry Trade and Investment.

Mamudu said the Federal Government invested billions of naira to acquire the huge land and import needed equipment for industrial clusters in six major cities across the country to give the auto policy a sound footing.

Mamudu has stated that regardless of the mammoth amounts spent, (N1 billion to bring in test equipment for a facility to test vehicles emission level, the government also paid N300 million for the land where test centre is) that nothing was currently happening at the Lagos centre and at other places.

His view was against the insinuated opinion that the NADDC didn’t consult anyone prior to the auto policy being put in place, saying there was around 6 months of back and forth meetings with relevant agencies, groups and auto players first.

Outlining the key areas of the policy, its objectives using a global template and the requirements to actualise the project such as incentives to attract investors/OEMs, acceptable credit facility for vehicle assemblers and buyers and anti-smuggling programme.

He said, “There is no need to change the NAIDP. We only need to review time taken for renewal of yearly.

Auto CEOs who spoke through Olutobi Ajayi of Nord Motors, Taiwo Shittu of Lanre Shittu Motors, and Deputy Managing Director, CFAO Motors, Kunke Jaiyesipmi, the current import duty of 10 per cent import duty for fully built units (vehicles) and 10 per cent for Semi-Knocked Down vehicles was discouraging local assembly of vehicles.

“There is no way local assembly plants can compete with FBU vehicle importers at 10 per cent duty. We buy diesel, pay workers, among other running cost but they don’t do,” said Ajayi.

They called for a review of the Finance Act.

Source: Vanguard, August 2022

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Finance Minister states 3 new assembly plants to build 6 global brands

This year, three further plants will begin to produce six global brands; Hyundai, Isuzu, Honda, KIA, Changan, and ZX Auto.

In addition to this, the current Toyota assembly plant, which started commercial production in 2021, will also start assembling Suzuki vehicles this year.

This ultimately means that the choice of vehicles that are made in Ghana will be broadened to a total of 13 different brands.

According to Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, the Ghana Automotive Development Programme under the Strategic Anchor Industries Initiative, continues to attract investment from global vehicle brands.

Nissan commissioned a new plant in April 2022 in greater Accra, at present its the largest automotive assembly plant in Ghana, having the capacity to build over 31,000 a year.

The same plant is set to produce Peugeot vehicles to be marketed in the domestic sector to neighbouring countires.

This brings the amount of brands assembled under the Ghana Automotive Development Programme to five namely, Volkswagen (VW), Toyota, Sinotruck, Nissan, Peugeot and Kantanka, Ghanaian local brand.

Certain measures have been put in place to support the programme, such as the enabling Act provided for an increase in the Customs duties to 35% of the CIF value on vehicles in the same category as those being assembled locally and the ban on import of salvaged vehicles and vehicles over 10 years of age, says Mr Ofori-Atta, as well as other things in the pipeline for the government to implement throughout this year.

“Additionally, to make the prices of these vehicles competitive, supplies of these vehicles will be zero-rated for VAT purposes until December 2023”, he explained.

Mr. Ofori-Atta elaborated on the matter, stating that assembling locally also opens up the avenue of producing/supplying components and parts, including spare parts for the automotive industry.

“In this regard, Government is drafting a Component Manufacturing Policy for implementation”, he stated.

Source: Myjoyonline, August 2022

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West Africa Automotive Show 2022 praised by exhibitors

Exhibitors from this years West Africa Automotive Show (WAAS) in Lagos, Nigeria, have described the Nigerian market as a very huge one for their business to thrive.

Exhibitors hailing from Africa, Asia, the US and Europe, all came into this year’s exhibition with the latest technologies in vehicle spare parts including batteries and lubricants, attracting vehicle owners and engineers alike to the show.


Sanjeev Arvind Khapre, Chief Operating Officer for Reem Batteries and Power Appliances Company, exhibited, who was the head of the defunct West Africa Batteries Limited in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital for ten years said that: ”Africa is a very big market so also Nigeria is a big market for automobile parts. There is no manufacturer of battery now in Nigeria after West Africa Batteries was closed down, so we want to market our products here and maybe later on we can have a manufacturing base here.”

Business Development Manager Ben Dadswell from BtoB Events Limited, the organisers of the event, said that The West Africa Automotive Show is an opportunity held annually for the automotive sector of West Africa to come together, network, forge new partnerships, discuss best practice and of course, do business.

He stated further: “I would like to take this opportunity to personally thank all our sponsors, exhibitors and show partners for their support since the launch of WAAS. We hope that you enjoy your time at the exhibition and manage to take away many new insights to generate future success for your business.”

Source: Tribune Online Nigeria, May 2022

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Lubrex strengthens its African operations by exhibiting at the West Africa Automotive Show!

Lubrex, the leading regional lubricant manufacturing company, is participating in the upcoming West Africa Automotive Show (WAAS) held in Nigeria. Based in UAE’s Hamriyah Free zone, Lubrex is looking forward to expanding its regional reach to meet with new channel partners and suppliers from the west Africa region.

Through its participation, Lubrex will promote its African market shares and provide a comprehensive picture of the range of products and services company offers with the aim to reach new customers and distributors, in addition to business networking, brand awareness, and staying up to date with new market trends.

Commenting on the importance of this participation, Abbas Moniri, Managing Director of Lubrex noted: “With over 100 exhibitors and 3,500 attendees, WAAS is considered as an integral part of the automotive industry in the region as it will bring together global suppliers, dealers, and manufacturers with regional stakeholders.”

“This is the first WAAS since the pandemic, and I am sure that all the industry players are as eager as we are to resume business as usual and we are looking forward to this participation,” the Managing Director concluded.

Visit Lubrex at stand B18

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Hunter Engineering to participate in West Africa Automotive Show for the first time

4,500 attendees expected in Lagos, Nigeria next month

ST. LOUIS – For the first time in its history, Hunter Engineering will be exhibiting at an automotive trade show on the African continent.

Hunter will be among the more than 100 exhibitors taking part in the West Africa Automotive Show at the Landmark Centre in Lagos, Nigeria, May 17-19.

Last held in 2019, the event is the only automotive show that takes place in West Africa. Hunter will welcome distributors and end users at the event, where they’ll find a range of aligners, wheel balancers, tire changers and brake lathes.

Participation in the show follows the key hiring last year of Ranjeet Mahato to serve as the regional manager for Hunter’s new North African region.

“We’re extremely excited to attend the West Africa Automotive Show for the first time,” said Hunter International Vice President Darcy Tallon. “It’s the logical next step to expand our reach in an international market where we’d previously not had a presence. We’re really optimistic about Hunter’s future in this part of the world.”

Hunter Engineering’s dedicated dealer network of importers and distributors delivers industry-leading world-class products to workshops in more than 100 countries across the globe. 

For more information, visit www.hunter.com.

Hunter Engineering Company® is the global leader in state-of-the-art wheel alignment systems, wheel balancers, brake lathes, tire changers, lift racks, unmanned inspection equipment, diagnostic scan tools and ADAS recalibration equipment. Hunter equipment is approved and used by vehicle manufacturers, automobile and truck dealers, tire dealers and service facilities around the world. 

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Rebranding lubricants and a bigger commitment to clean energy by TotalEnergies

TotalEnergies rebrands its lubricants in an effort to reaffirm their clean energy commitments.

TotalEnergies engineers and vends lubricants worldwide as a major player in the industrial, automotive and maritime sectors.

Managing Director of TotalEnergies Dr Seye Samba spoke at the new lubricant launch advising of new colours, new labels and a more ergonomic design to be expected when it hits the market.

Dr Samba said: “We are a leading global manufacturer and marketer of lubricants, with 42 production sites around the world. Here in Nigeria, we have our lubricant and bitumen blending plants in Lagos and Koko, Delta State.

“We have lubricant storage plants in all parts of the country as well as employees that are committed to providing energy that is more affordable, cleaner and more reliable as well as accessible to as many people as possible.”

In addition to new design, he said the lubricants division contributes to the company’s ambition to offer cleaner energy, adding that a reduction in the weight of cans will prevent the emission of 9,500 tons of CO2 equivalent each year owing to raw materials savings.

With these new cans, he said consumers can identify the product they need at a glance, due to the color coding.

“The colour codes show platinum for top-tier, silver for mid-tier and bronze for entry range products. Buyers can then zoom in on the product they need by checking the new label, which is much clearer and easier to read”, he added.

Source: The Guardian, December 2021

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