By Petronella Sibeene WINDHOEK Prominent business baron Harold Pupkewitz has welcomed the initiative by the Namibia Contract Haulage (NCH) Company and a Chinese automobile company FAW to establish a joint venture. The two have gone into a partnership in which they intend to assemble Chinese vehicles and machinery to be sold locally and outside Namibia. This week, NCH and FAW signed a memorandum of understanding that cemented the deal to establish such a facility in Namibia. Pupkewitz views the venture as an opportunity for employment creation and skills transfer to and for Namibians. The business tycoon also warned that such a development might have certain handicaps. “There is need to assemble (vehicles) where skills are abundant,” he said. Meanwhile, one of the directors of NCH Elias Shanyengana said the venture will collect its yields and will thrive especially that pricing will be a third of the purchasing price from other dealers. The plant will manufacture different types of sedans such as Jiaxing, Xiali and Hongqi, luxury buses and coaches, light, medium and heavy-duty trucks and mining machinery. Vehicles such as the tipper trucks are in great demand especially in the construction industry. So far, only the NCH itself has purchased 12 big buses and 10 tipper trucks. The company has also invited Namibians to place their orders. While he could not indicate the price range for these modern vehicles, Shanyengana says affordability was the primary cause for the signing of the memorandum of understanding. This factor will make the manufactured automobiles highly competitive, he said. “We will penetrate the market region-wise and this will also set Namibia at a different level,” he added. Depending on the response from the Namibian and SADC markets, the two parties might further engage in other mutually beneficial agreements given FAW’s Asian experience in road construction and property development sectors. FAW started in 1956 and is headquartered in Changchun. The company makes use of the latest technology to ensure a competitive edge in the market.