Thaco & South Korean partner to produce agricultural machinery

                                                                        Photo: Thaco

Two sides sign agreement for production and distribution of agricultural machinery.

The Truong Hai Automobile JSC (Thaco) has held a signing ceremony for a cooperative agreement with South Korea’s LS Mtron in producing and distributing agricultural machinery, beginning in October.

LS Mtron will transfer technology to Thaco for the construction of a plant in central Quang Nam province producing machinery and equipment used in agriculture, which will have a localization rate of 50 per cent and be branded Thaco and be distributed by the Vietnamese partner. The second stage will expand production for export to Southeast Asia.

“This is a new business endeavor under Thaco’s development strategy to be the multi-industry group, which places mechanical and automobiles as key industries,” Thaco Chairman Tran Ba Duong said. “It is also part of its responsibility in participating in Vietnam’s agriculture production in the context of it being a key sector of the economy heading towards industrialization and high-tech application, so that it may continue to develop in the future.”

“I believe that with a similar vision and business philosophy and with growth based on the partnership, the cooperation between the two sides will succeed,” said Deputy Chairman of LS Mtron Ja Eun Koo. “We will become the leading company in agricultural machinery in Vietnam and Southeast Asia.”

Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Quang, Chairman of the Quang Nam Provincial People’s Committee, said the partnership is a notable event for the local company, the province, and the country’s agriculture sector, marking a milestone in Thaco’s development in production and providing a foundation for developing the new field in the future. Mr. Hoang Van Thang, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, highlighted that the country’s agriculture sector has ten key items with total export value of $32 billion and employs more than 90 million people. “Manual workers in the industry are large in number but capacity is low,” he said. “The cooperation between these two companies will open up new prospects and contribute to speeding up the industrialization of agriculture and enhance the competitiveness of the industry and farmers’ livelihoods.”

LS Mtron began operations in agricultural machinery in 1997. LS tractors account for the largest share in South Korea and it has established a business network in the US and factories in China and Brazil. It exports to 40 countries and 12,000 tractors annually to North America - the largest agricultural machinery market in the world.

Thaco began expanding the Truong Hai-Chu Lai Mechanical Automobile Industrial Zone last year, with investment of $35.3 million. It also began operations at a new production line of trailers and special purpose vehicles, and begun to export to South America.

by Nghi Do / VET