It is something that has been rumoured for quite some time but Porsche and Sime Darby have finally confirmed that they are working together to set up an assembly plant in Malaysia. The new endeavour is part of the German automaker’s effort to strengthen its presence in Southeast Asia which has seen an increase of 9% in terms of deliveries last year despite the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sime Darby is currently Porsche’s exclusive importer and distributor in Malaysia although the relationship between both companies has been going on for more than 10 years. The company also has almost 40 years of experience in vehicle assembly and operates a facility in Kulim that assembles vehicles for Hyundai, BMW, Land Rover, MINI, and Mazda.

sime darby inokom kulim plant 01 — Sime Darby Motors’ Inokom assembly plant in Kulim, Kedah. The facility was acquired by Sime Darby in 2004.

Interesting enough, the Malaysian facility will be the first Porsche’s assembly plant outside of Europe. Not only that, Porsche has also noted that the vehicles assembled there will be made available exclusively for Malaysia.

At the moment, Porsche and Sime Darby have not yet disclosed which models will be assembled at the new facility. Nevertheless, both companies have said that production at the plant will begin in 2022.

(Source: Porsche, Sime Darby. Image: Porsche, Inokom.)