Finance minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan has visited the Inokom plant in Kulim, Kedah yesterday, according to the Malaysian ministry of finance.
The Inokom operation in Kulim is an automotive assembly hub spanning 200 acres that presently involves 29 vehicle models from seven brands, with over 530,000 vehicles assembled since the start of operations and exports account for 20% of its output, the ministry of finance stated.
Among the facilities of the operation receiving focus is the first Porsche assembly plant outside Europe, where the facelifted E3 Porsche Cayenne is currently assembled. CKD assembly of the Cayenne began in March 2022 in pre-facelift form.
The Porsche assembly facility in Kulim was expanded to 11,000 square metres in 2024 for the assembly of the Cayenne S E-Hybrid Coupé, which went on sale in January 2025. This model is also assembled for export to Thailand. As of March this year, 5,000 units of this model have been assembled at the Kulim facility, according to the ministry.
Driving the achievement is the 100% local workforce at Inokom, including Eisqil Yuliana who began with the Sime Protégé programme in 2019 before joining Inokom as a process engineer, and now leads engineering at the Porsche production plant, the ministry noted.
Benefits of local vehicle assembly at Inokom trickle down to the local ecosystem, with around RM3 billion contributed to local vendors through components, logistics and associated supporting services, it said.
The growth of local companies with the globally established manufacturer reflects the multiplier effect which the ministry wants to drive via the capital-to-capabilities approach through Gear-Up (Government-Linked Enterprises Activation and Reform Programme) under the Madani economy framework, said the ministry of finance.
This is to fortify strategic sectors, transfer knowledge, develop Malaysian talent and open up opportunities for local companies to climb the value chain, and are part of efforts toward raising the economic ceiling while elevating the rakyat through better jobs, skills and opportunities, the ministry said.
The post FM2 Amir Hamzah visits Sime Inokom, Kulim; 100% local staff, 530k cars made, 20% export, RM3 billion to vendors appeared first on Paul Tan’s Automotive News.
