Sinotruk unveils new chapter of Central Asia market under BRI

Shandong Heavy Industry Group's Global Partner Conference and a product exhibition under the brand "Friendly Shandong, Remarkable Shandong" were held in Astana, capital of Kazakhstan, on Sept 4, inviting more than 400 of Shandong Heavy Industry Group's channel operators, major customers and partners from five Central Asian countries.

Lin Wu, Party secretary of Shandong province, said during the event that exchanges and cooperation between Kazakhstan and Shandong have become increasingly close.

Shandong Heavy Industry Group and other Shandong enterprises have also invested and built factories in Kazakhstan and cooperated with local partners.

Shandong's high-tech growth is strong, its innovation capacity is accelerating and its major technologies, such as heavy commercial vehicle powertrains and high thermal efficiency diesel engines, are among the best in the world, he added.

In his speech, Marat Karabayev, minister of transport of Kazakhstan, said that Shandong Heavy Industry Group is one of the most successful companies in terms of cooperation with local enterprises in the fields of science and technology.

He said that Kazakhstan plans to introduce more trade assistance systems and formulate practical measures to expand strategic cooperation between the two countries.

Tan Xuguang, chairman of Shandong Heavy Industry Group, and also chairman of Sinotruk and Weichai Group — subsidiaries of the group, then shared the company's business development in Central Asia.

"Sinotruk will further leverage its technological advantages, synergies of large-scale resources, and leading advantages in the new energy industrial chain to continuously provide world-class product solutions for global partners. The company aims to establish a close and collaborative relationship with global partners, rooted in local operations, and achieve mutual benefit and common progress," Tan said.

Since 2018, Sinotruk has seized opportunities brought by Uzbekistan's reform and opening-up, developed adaptive products for the country and promoted localized production.

From January to July, it sold 2,290 heavy trucks in Uzbekistan.

Its market share exceeded 50 percent, ranking it first among heavy truck makers in the country.

On Sept 6, a Sinotruk HOWO V5 truck drove out of the factory of Uz Truck and Bus Motors, marking the 3,000th Sinotruk vehicle produced by the company.

In January 2020, Sinotruk invested 10.78 million euros in Uzbekistan through capital increase and stock expansion in establishing Uz Truck and Bus Motors in partnership with UzAuto and Germany's MAN truck and bus maker.

The joint venture mainly imports vehicles, spare parts, and components from Sinotruk and MAN for assembly and sales, as well as provides vehicle services.

On Sept 8, Alikhan Smailov, prime minister of Kyrgyzstan and Lin, Party secretary of Shandong, jointly unveiled the Shandong Heavy Industries (Kyrgyzstan) Maintenance Service Center.

After its completion, the center will be the largest industrial equipment maintenance service center in Central Asia.

Tan presented the Zhongtong CT medical vehicle to the Kyrgyz side on the spot.

Shandong Heavy Industry Group's Global Partner Conference and a product exhibition under the brand "Friendly Shandong, Remarkable Shandong" are held in Astana, capital of Kazakhstan on Sept 4. CHINA DAILY