Mahindra accelerating into its third decade in SA

The company recently hosted over 7 000 guests at its inaugural Fusion Fest, a collaboration of artists across different music genres, art forms and fashion. It was attended by Deputy President Paul Mashatile and featured a special XUV 3XO designed by Thula Sindi.

Two days later it visited its new production facility in the Dube Tradeport, which it is building in conjunction with AIH Logistics and which will more than double its assembly capability.

The next day, in the hallowed Long Room at the DP World Wanderers Stadium, Mahindra announced a partnership with the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) to establish a Completely Knocked-Down (CKD) manufacturing facility in South Africa. The venue for this signing was not chosen by accident. Mahindra is the sponsor of the Gauteng Lions and Joburg Super Kings.

The Mahindra-IDC partnership will take the form of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the next 12 to 18 months. During this time, the two parties will investigate every part of the manufacturing value chain, including manufacturing partners, possible sites for this - much larger - factory, the local demand for a locally manufactured Mahindra and possible export markets.

Of note is the fact that Mahindra and the IDC included electric vehicles and related technologies in the MoU.

Mahindra recently launched its first two all-electric vehicles under its new BE - Born Electric - brand. These vehicles were birthed in India, but much of the technology and development happened in Europe, which is a good indication of the company’s target market for this modern range of EVs.

Speaking on the sidelines of the event, Vijay Nakra – global president of Mahindra Automotive and chair of the Mahindra South Africa board of directors – reiterated the group’s commitment to South Africa.

Vijay, who was the very first CEO of Mahindra in South Africa in 2004, says that South Africa is their second largest market outside of India and their most important development market.

From this base, the company hopes to rapidly expand its reach in Africa and other markets.

While not confirmed, the assumption is that Mahindra will manufacture the all-new Pik Up in South Africa. The group launched the concept model to a global audience in Cape Town in 2023 and it has since involved local overland specialists and enthusiasts in its market research and product development.

By all accounts, Mahindra is expected to assemble the new Pik Up alongside its current range at its new assembly facility in Durban and then move to full production when the MoU reaches its conclusion.

The new Durban assembly facility is expected to come online in June this year, while the new generation Pik Up will be unveiled “before the end of the year”.