An automobile assembling plant is to commence production in Akwa Ibom soon following the arrival of the last crates of equipment and machines for the factory located in Itu local government area of the state.
Constructed by Mimshac/Merkavim transportation technologies, it is expected to start a commercial transportation scheme, an intracity route, inter-city routes and interstate routes in the south-south and south eastern parts of the country and would produce commercial buses, waste disposal trucks, fire fighting trucks, and private vehicles among others.
Ufot Ebong, Senior Personal Assistant to the state governor on technical matters who made this known while receiving the equipment on said the factory building would be prefabricated while all the materials are to be designed in Israel to be coupled at the factory.
He said the plant would start production before the first quarter of next year adding that a good number of people would be trained in car assembly in Israel to be carried out in batches.
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According to him, the vehicles to be produced would be stainless, non-rust for the Nigerian environment and roads while the factory would have a “control room that monitors activities in the commercial buses and stations.”
The factory is seen as one of the industrialization programmes of the Governor, expected to create over 2000 job opportunities is coming at the time the governor has come under criticism over the high level of unemployment in the state.
Speaking to reporters, Valentino Okorie, the company’s managing director said work on the production line was delayed due to the coronavirus as borders were all shut preventing the movement of goods and services.
Experts have however expressed worry over the ability of the factory to operate optimally without constant power supply which has been the bane of many factories in the state.
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