Volkswagen to Invest Massive R4 Billion into Kariega for Locally Built SUV

Volkswagen has announced that it will invest R4 billion into its Kariega facility to prepare for the production of a new ICE-powered SUV by 2027 which is touted to be more affordable than the T-Cross.

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A total of R4 billion will be invested into the facility, which will be allocated as capital expenditure for production facilities, manufacturing of tooling, local content tooling and quality assurance of the newcomer. Volkswagen adds that nearly R877 million will be spent to enhance automation in the Body Shop while an estimated R418 million will be utilised to procure new press tooling for the Press Shop. The first phase of the plant facility upgrade will begin at the end of 2024 during the plant shutdown.

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Martina Biene, Chairperson and Managing Director of Volkswagen Group Africa, said the investment announcement reaffirms Volkswagen Group’s commitment to South Africa, where it has been manufacturing vehicles for nearly 73 years.

“Plant Kariega is an important manufacturing plant within the Volkswagen Group production network. Since 2011, Volkswagen has invested R10,28 billion in production facilities, manufacturing equipment, local content tooling and training of people. The new investment is a vote of confidence in the future of the plant. It also futureproofs jobs, not only for our people but also those employed in our supplier network,” – Biene.

Volkswagen hasn’t named the third model that is birthed on the production line yet although they have detailed it will be an SUV that will share the same production line as the Polo and Polo Vivo – the top-selling passenger models for the Volkswagen Passenger Cars Brand in South Africa. The automaker also mentioned that Volkswagen Brazil will be leading the design and development of the new model although Volkswagen Group Africa’s Engineering team has collaborated with the South American branch for the adaptation of the new model to the local and continental requirements. This includes the development of a right-hand drive version. Once production is underway, Biene added that the model has the