Group PSA has signed an investment agreement with the Namibian government, to assemble Opel and Peugeot vehicles in Walvis Bay.

The joint venture between the automotive giant and Namibia Development Corporation (NDC) is part of PSA’s ‘Push to Pass‘ plan.

Opel’s Grandland X and Peugeot’s 3008, two vehicles that share the same underpinnings, will be produced in Namibia from the second half of 2018. The goal is to reach an annual targeted volume of 5,000 by 2020, and to meet the SACU (South African Custom Union) countries market demand.

The states included are Namibia, South-Africa, Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland, and according to PSA, Opel is seen as having “a real potential in the region”.

“This investment in Namibia is part of the long term strategy of Group PSA to increase its sales in Africa and the Middle East, consistent with our target to sell one million vehicles in 2025″, commented PSA’s Executive VP for Middle East and Africa, Jean-Christophe Quemard. “This new capacity will serve regional markets with products in line with our Opel and Peugeot customer expectation.”

In addition to the African continent, Opel will strengthen its presence in other markets across South America and Asia, where it’s already present. Moreover, it will enter “more than 20 new export markets by 2020”.

Besides the new Opel Grandland X and Peugeot 3008, other products will be assembled in Walvis Bay, Namibia, at a later stage. It’s still too early to talk about the potential vehicles that will be put together in the new facility, but we’re probably looking at other crossovers/SUVs.