Stellantis to take over distributorship of Peugeot vehicles in early 2024, taking over from Bermaz

Stellantis, the world’s 4th largest automaker as of 2022, made public its plan to create a new national sales company (NSC) in Malaysia by the first quarter of 2024.

This entity will oversee the sales and distribution of Peugeot vehicles, aligning with Stellantis' growth objectives in the ASEAN region and its global Dare Forward 2030 strategy, which more aggressively emphasises electrification.

A substantial investment is planned to introduce vehicles based on their new STLA Medium platform to the ASEAN region, which the company aim at EVs with a range of up to 700km, likely utilising Stellantis’ plant in Gurun to assemble EVs for local and export markets.

While Bermaz Auto Alliance currently holds exclusive distributorship for Peugeot vehicles in Malaysia, the upcoming and yet unnamed NSC will take charge of this role in the coming months.

That said, during the transition, Bermaz will continue closely collaborating with Stellantis, selling vehicles through its network.

The aim is to broaden offerings and services in Malaysia, potentially introducing new brands from the Stellantis portfolio - Citroen and DS come immediately to mind, but there is something to be said about Jeep and maybe even Opel.

Daniel Gonzalez, Stellantis' Chief Operating Officer for ASEAN & General Distributors, expressed enthusiasm for this shift in strategy, emphasising the plan to introduce new brands in Malaysia under the Stellantis umbrella.

Leading this new NSC will be Jamie Francis Morais, leveraging his extensive 19-year experience in the automotive industry, previously working with renowned global brands like Toyota, BMW, Nissan, and Proton.

In a statement, both BAA and Stellantis reiterated their committed to ensuring uninterrupted vehicle service, parts, warranty, and after sales service for Peugeot customers in Malaysia.

On the subject of future launches from the Peugeot brand, we already know that the e-2008 is a very likely, even overdue, candidate following its public preview back in May. Meanwhile, the all-new 408 has been spotted undergoing local tests for months now.

Following this news, it’s not much of a stretch to expect they could be first new Peugeot models to be launched locally under Stellantis.