In Malaysia and China: Porsche is building a factory and research location in Asia for the first time

The sports car manufacturer Porsche is significantly expanding its presence in Asia.

While a research and development site is to be built in China, a factory is being built in Malaysia.

Susanne Preuss

Business correspondent in Stuttgart.

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Both activities are currently not particularly extensive, but they are symbolic, because in the past Porsche was very focused on the locations in the Stuttgart region and Leipzig.

Only the Cayenne SUV model is assembled at VW's Slovakian plant in Bratislava before the body is brought together with the drive in Leipzig.

For some time, Porsche also had the entry-level Boxster manufactured by the contract manufacturer Valmet in Finland.

Region with "great potential"

In Malaysia, Porsche is now building a factory in Asia for the first time.

The reason for this is the high import tariffs, which is why it is initially only about covering the Malaysian market.

At Porsche, they do not want to provide any information about the quantities for which the assembly plant is designed, which is being built with long-term sales partner Sime Darby and is to open in 2022.

In the whole of Southeast Asia, Porsche sold 2,500 cars last year - that is not even one percent of Porsche's total sales.

In Malaysia alone, Porsche sold 400 cars last year, 9 percent more than in the previous year.

It is about a region with “great potential and innovative strength,” says the Porsche press release.

From the point of view of Production Director Albrecht Reimold, the decisive factor is not the size of the project: "Rather, we show a willingness to learn and adapt to special local market conditions." With a view to the increasing restrictions in the customer markets, experience with small local assembly factories is to be gained.

Porsche is also only starting its research and development activities in China on a small scale.

The team will initially have around 15 people who will primarily advance the topics of connectivity, autonomous driving and digital services for cars in Shanghai next year.

In these areas of development, China, with its digitally savvy consumers, is considered to be trend-setting.

China has been Porsche's largest market for six years. Last year almost 89,000 cars were sold there, which is almost a third of the total sales volume. “With the new development location in China, we are making a decisive contribution to getting to know and understand the needs of our local customers even better,” said Porsche boss Oliver Blume, explaining the motivation for the location in a message: “The Chinese car market is special dynamic, customer requirements very specific. We want to meet these requirements in the best possible way. "