Great Wall Motors Is First Recipient Of EEV Incentives In Malaysia

China's leading SUV manufacturer Great Wall Motors, via its Malaysian assembler Go Automobile Manufacturing (GAM), is set to become the first company to receive the energy efficient vehicle (EEV) manufacturing license from the Malaysian government.

A report from the The Edge Malaysia yesterday revealed that the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) will be announcing the awarding of EEV manufacturing license to Go Automobile Manufacturing Sdn. Bhd. (GAM).

Presumably, this also meant that GAM will be receiving the much talked about but still short on details 'customised EEV incentives.'

Under the National Automotive Policy (NAP) 2014, manufacturers of vehicles that meet MITI's EEV requirements for fuel consumption are entitled to customised incentives and will be awarded a manufacturing license to setup assembly plants in the country.

The specifics of the incentives however, are not disclosed and MITI says the negotiations for the incentives will be made behind closed doors.

Great Wall Motors began in China as an SUV and 4x4 specialist, with its Wingle pick-up truck and Haval series SUVs. Of late, the company has also expanded into compact and sub-compact cars.

Neither Great Wall Motors nor its Malaysian representatives at GAM have made any official announcement on the matter but we believe that the EEV model in question here refers to the Great Wall M4.

According to the company's website, the Chinese market M4 model is powered by a 1.5-litre VVT MPI petrol engine. There is only one transmission available - a 5-speed manual transmission (no automatic transmission option). Weighing just 1,106 kg, the M4's claimed fuel consumption of 6-litres/100 km meets MITI's EEV requirements.

GAM currently operates a 15,000 units per year assembly plant in Gurun, Kedah. The EEV incentives and manufacturing license is likely to be used in expanding the company's existing plant to include a 20,000 units per year assembly line.

Update: Great Wall Motors Obtains EEV Licence, Aims To Produce 100,000 Units by 2018,