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Nissan to end production of Datsun cars in Indonesia: Source
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Students visit a Nissan and Datsun factory. The government is looking to channel vocational schools graduates to industries to address the shortage of skilled workers. (Kompas.com)
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utomaker Nissan Motor Indonesia (NMI) will end the production of some Datsun cars in Purwakarta, West Java, in January, according to a source.
As reported by kompas.com, an unnamed vendor of production components who joined NMI representatives in a regional meeting in Jakarta on Wednesday mentioned that the company confirmed it would stop the production of the models Datsun Go and Go+ at Plant 2.
“We were all asked to turn off our phones during the presentation. Then [the company] announced it would stop production in January 2020,” the source told kompas.com.
The source said that, according to NMI’s presentation, Datsun would maintain its operations following the shutdown, but it would only have to rely on the remaining car models.
“They’re counting on Livina and imports from Thailand,” the source said.
Industry Ministry Maritime Industry, Transportation and Defense Equipment Director General Putu Juli Ardika confirmed the imminent reduction of Datsun’s car production, saying NMI had submitted a report to the ministry explaining that Datsun would pivot toward the components industry.
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“Nissan will shut down the production of Datsun Go and Go+ in January 2020 due to subpar sales,” Putu said on Friday. “The company plans to focus on the localization of main components for Livina and Xpander engines. The components were previously produced in Japan. They also aim to develop electrification technology.”
The Association of Indonesian Automotive Manufacturers (Gaikindo) has recorded that Datsun only sold 2,388 cars in 2018 – a relatively small number considering that sales in the low-cost green car segment that Datsun primarily competes in exceeded 200,000 cars in the same year.
Datsun hasn’t been able to recover since, as it only sold 1,862 cars from January through September this year.
Datsun, which began production in 1931, temporarily stopped production in 1986. In 2012, Japanese auto giant Nissan revived Datsun as a low-cost car brand for use in Indonesia, South Africa, India and Russia. Under Nissan’s stewardship, Datsun eventually expanded to more markets, including Kazakhstan in 2015 and Belarus and Lebanon in 2016.
