Renault began exporting the Twizy mini electric vehicle from South Korea to Europe this week, a move designed to lift production at Renault-Samsung Motor’s Busan plant which is currently struggling with low capacity utilisation.
Renault Samsung, which is 80% owned by Renault, also hopes that local production – which started earlier in October – will help lift local sales of the model to around 15,000 annually.
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The company began importing the two seat electric vehicle from Renault’s Valladolid plant in Spain in 2016 and so far it has sold just 3,400 units in South Korea.
The model is currently priced at between KRW13.3m and KRW14.3m (US$11,400-$12,200) before government subsidies of up to KRW5m.
The first batch of 142 Twizys was shipped to Europe this week and other Asian markets will be targeted later on.
Renault Samsung’s only vehicle assembly plant has a production capacity of 270,000 units per year.
The company’s global sales fell by 24% to 129,913 units in the first nine months of 2019 from 171,895 units in the year earlier – reflecting strong domestic competition from Hyundai and Kia and lower demand from Nissan Motor for shipments of the Rogue SUV – a contract that has now been discontinued.
