This follows shortly on the news of the establishment of a state-of-the-art Automotive Plant in Coega in the Eastern Cape as part of the manufacture’s plan to reach 22% market share in the Middle East & Africa region by 2030.

Mike Whitfield has been appointed Managing Director. He was with Nissan where he spent his entire working life in various leadership positions and on a number of continents. Most recently, Mike was the Group Advisor for Strategy, Policy and External Affairs after a number of years as Managing Director of Nissan Africa.

He also played a major role in the leadership of the South African automotive industry and the development of a Pan-African automotive industry through both the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (naamsa) and the African Association of automotive Manufacturers (AAAM). He is a past president of naamsa and is currently in his second term as president of the AAAM.

The second new appointment is Pravin Harinarayan as Sales Director. He was with MAN Truck and Bus South Africa where he was the Head of Sales operations since 2017.

Prior to MAN, he worked in various positions at Volvo South Africa such as Sales & Dealer Network Director and Chief Financial Officer. Pravin has a master’s degree in business administration (MBA) from the University of Pretoria (SA).

The third new appointment is Hassan Salie as After-sales Director. He joins the company from Audi Africa where he was the Head of Sales and Network Development since 2020.

Prior to Audi, he worked in various positions at Volkswagen South Africa such as Head of After-sales and Head of Network Development. Hassan has master’s degree in business administration (MBA) from the Management College of SA.