Japan’s Mitsubishi Electric Corp has announced plans to invest in South Africa with the establishment of an office in Johannesburg that will service the local market and the rest of the continent.
Starting operations from June, the new branch will focus on market research and business development in order to bolster the company’s business offerings mainly in the sub-Saharan region, the company said in a statement.
The new branch office will be headed by GM Hidetoshi Nishiyama, who has 18 years of business experience in Africa, it said.
The office will be located in Fourways, north of Johannesburg.
With annual revenues of more than ¥4 trillion (about R400bn), Mitsubishi Electric Corp is a multinational electronics and electrical equipment manufacturing company based in Tokyo. The firm is a major producer of photovoltaic panels for generating solar power.
The company’s equipment is used in information processing and communications, space development and satellite communications, consumer electronics, industrial technology, energy, transportation and building equipment.
Mitsubishi Electric’s South African operation will report in Europe.
“South Africa is one of the largest markets on the African continent, benefitting from a well-developed business environment and an established infrastructure. It is the gateway into the Sub-Saharan zone, which, with its growing population, promises strong potential for future growth,” Mitsubishi Electric Europe president and CEO Yoji Saito said in the statement.
Mitsubishi Electric has been operating in South Africa since the 1970s and currently sells lifts and escalators through a local sister company as well as offering factory automation, air conditioning and visual information equipment to the market through local distributors.
In 2014, the company generated turnover of approximately ¥5bn (about R500m) from African, including infrastructure business exported from Japan.
“By establishing the South African branch of Mitsubishi Electric Europe, the company is seeking to expand its local business structure and market presence,” it said. — © 2015 NewsCentral Media
