Boon Siew Honda to invest RM200m in new plant

GEORGE TOWN (Sept 22, 2011): Boon Siew Honda Sdn Bhd is to build a RM200 million motorcycle production facility in Penang to replace the existing Mak Mandin plant in Butterworth.

Construction of the new facility in Batu Kawan is to begin in November for completion in the first half of 2013.

It will be five times larger than the existing plant and have an annual production capacity of 350,000 units per year.

CEO Satoshi Okada said the new plant will employ another 100 people in production and quality assurance, in addition to the existing 1,000 all-local workforce when operational.

He said it will be an "environmentally-responsible and people-friendly plant" as it would employ various advanced technologies such as a solar photovoltaic system, a lighting system using sunlight and technologies for better ergonomics.

"The motorcycle market in Malaysia has been showing steady growth and a further growth trend is expected. It was in this context that Boon Siew Honda made the decision to build a new motorcycle plant," Okada told a press conference Thursday.

Also present were Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng, senior executives of Boon Siew Honda, and representatives from Penang Development Coropration (PDC), InvestPenang and other government agencies.

The current plant manufactures six motorcycle models — the EX5 Dream, Wave 100, Wave Dash, Wave 110, Wave 125 and the Icon — for the local market.

Production of the six models will continue at the new plant and there are plans to produce models with medium-size engines as well as high-value-added models.

Boon Siew Honda, a joint venture between Oriental Holdings Bhd and Honda Motor Co Ltd, is the market leader for motorcycles with a 45% share. It sold some 220,000 units in 2010.

Since local production of Honda motorcycles started in 1969, a total of 4.23 million units have been manufactured.

Meanwhile, Lim said Honda is an important part of the Penang economy because it has a large spillover effect.

"Lots of providers of ancillary services rely on Honda and these services are an important part of Penang's strategy for growth," he said.