General Motors has entered a lucrative joint venture in Uzbekistan to expand its Eastern European operations. The Uzbek plant could produce 250,000 cars annually.
General Motors hopes that its expansion into wild territory, also known as ‘developing market’, will yield results in the short-term and help Toyota to outperform in the long-term. Uzbekistan could be one of these gold mines in the coming years. The country has a 70,500-strong car market, which is about ten percent of South Africa’s, but a few millions more than the US, with its 16,000,000+ domestic market.
UzAvtoSanoat and GM have formed a joint venture to aim for a dominant position in the Uzbek auto industry. This is known as the JV General Motors Uzbekistan. Rick Wagoner, GM Chairman and CEO, stated that “a key component of our growth strategy is GM’s aggressive movement in recent years to establish a leading position in the fastest growing markets in the world.” We are confident that General Motors Uzbekistan can make a significant contribution to the Uzbek economy’s growth and development. This joint venture will support GM’s and Chevrolet’s continued growth throughout Central and Eastern Europe.
Asaka’s plant has a capacity of 250,000 annually and can be assembled Epica, Tacuma, and Captiva. If the country decides to export to its neighboring states, as is the current plan, it could reach that capacity in the middle-term. There is no confirmation yet on whether a new Camaro or Corvette will be made available.