Kia has appointed Stellantis Malaysia as the contract assembler to locally assemble (CKD) its vehicles for local and export markets within the region. Taking place at the Stellantis plant in Gurun, the CKD operation is scheduled to begin sometime in Q3 this year.
The CKD operation will start with current Kia models, which include Sportage and Carnival, that are currently being assembled at Sime Motors’ Inokom plant in Kulim. Future Kia models will be assembled in Gurun too, as the Korean giant will be leveraging the plant’s capability to support multiple types of powertrains.
With an annual capacity of 60,000 units, the 140-acre Stellantis Gurun plant currently employs over 400 personnel and has its own paint and body shop as well as an on-site test track. The facility also has dedicated zones for vendors and suppliers.
The latest cooperation with Kia came right after Stellantis announced the start of CKD operation for Leapmotor EVs at the Gurun plant. In a way, one may see this as a full circle moment for the Gurun plant, as Kia vehicles have been assembled there before, when it still belonged to the Naza Group.
