KOREA-BASED telecoms manufacturing giant Samsung yesterday signed a $10 million deal with a local company, Cranbal Investments, that will see the international firm setting up a television and refrigerator assembly plant in Zimbabwe next year.
BY VICTORIA MTOMBA
Cranbal Investments is the majority shareholder in ART Corporation.
Speaking at the signing ceremony in Harare, Cranbal Investments chairman Moses Chundu said they expected to spend $1 million on the television plant which would assembly TV sets ranging from 28 inches to 55 inches.
Chundu said the fridge assembly plant will also cost $1 million and would involve putting together over 15 parts to make chest freezers and the 3050 TMF model.
“Knockdown kits for the first year of operation are valued in the range of $7 million financed from Korea.
“After adding the value of the plant and fittings all to be financed from Korea, the investment scale is in excess of $10 million,” Chundu said.
Chundu said the plant would be located at Sunway City along Mutare Road and would be complete by January 2016.
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Guest of honour Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa said the Koreans had been in the country for over a decade and had been consistent in bringing business to Zimbabwe.
“I hope we will see expansion and increase of trade with Korea. We will do our best as government to create an environment where the business environment will do its best. We are anxious under the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation (ZimAsset) that we create a competitive environment in the region,” he said.
Samsung chief executive and president for Africa Sung Yong Hong said the agreement would see the two countries working on technology transfer as well as provide educational solutions.
“We are demonstrating our partnership with Zimbabwe to show that it can be Africa’s great future. Zimbabwe has been chosen to get the licence to distribute the Samsung products,” Hong said.
South Korea ambassador to Zimbabwe Kwon Yong-kyu said his country would set up a solar-powered Internet school, tele-medical centre, dental and blood analysis clinic and establish an engineering academy.
“By working together with government, this is how we are demonstrating our approach to investing in people and their communities,” he said.
Chundu said the investment would create 120 jobs directly at the two plants.
