Mahindra South Africa Inaugurates New State-of-Art Vehicle Assembly Facility in Durban

Mahindra South Africa, the local subsidiary of the Indian giant, has inaugurated a new, purpose-built vehicle assembly facility at the Dube TradePort Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in KwaZulu-Natal, as it ramps up its production capacity here. The new plant, located close to Mahindra’s first assembly site built in the SEZ in 2018, has been designed to Mahindra’s global manufacturing standards, incorporating advanced quality control systems, expanded production lines, and dedicated customisation zones for South African customers.

Since the introduction of its pickup vehicles, known locally as ‘bakkies’, Mahindra’s capacity to easily customise cars to buyers’ specifications has rapidly become a major selling pointthe introduction of its pickup vehicles, known locally as ‘bakkies’, Mahindra’s capacity to easily customise cars to buyers’ specifications has rapidly become a major selling point.

“As demand for our locally assembled pickup range continued to rise, we needed a facility with the scale, flexibility, and technology to meet future growth while maintaining world-class quality,” said Mahindra SA CEO Rajesh Gupta.

Along with Mahindra executives from India, Gupta frequently refers to South Africa as Mahindra’s “second home outside India”.

The Durban facility has the capacity to assemble over 1,000 single and double-cab pickup models per month, with the ability to scale further as demand grows for its customers in the southern African region.

“It also offers the flexibility to accommodate new models Mahindra plans to introduce in the coming years, alongside an increasing level of locally sourced components. Mahindra’s global engineering teams have been working with local suppliers to identify opportunities for greater localisation, further supporting South Africa’s industrial development,” Gupta added. Earlier this year, Mahindra partnered with the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) to launch a feasibility study into building a full-scale manufacturing plant in the country. The company said that the insights from operations at the new Durban facility will play an important role in shaping this study.

“This investment underscores our confidence in South Africa as both a manufacturing base and a key growth market for Mahindra globally. It reflects our commitment to creating jobs, supporting local industry, and delivering robust, reliable vehicles that meet the needs of South African customers,” Gupta said.

Sachin Arolkar, Head of International Operations, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd, echoed this view.

“South Africa is a cornerstone market in Mahindra’s international growth strategy. This new facility not only strengthens our ability to serve local customers but also enhances our regional manufacturing capabilities. It is a clear demonstration of our long-term commitment to invest in Africa and to make South Africa a central hub in our global operations,” Arolkar said.

Mahindra SA’s local partner AIH Logistics also hailed the new facility.

“Our partnership with Mahindra since 2018 has delivered a world-class semi-knocked-down automotive facility that stands as the largest of its kind in South Africa. This achievement reflects the power of collaboration between global expertise and local capability, creating jobs, developing skills, and advancing the country’s automotive manufacturing sector,” said Dr Dempsey Naidoo, Chairman of AIH Logistics.

Since assembling its first local bakkie in 2018, Mahindra has grown to become a top 10 best-selling brand in South Africa.

According to the official sales statistics from the industry representative body Naamsa, Mahindra is one of the three fastest-growing brands over the past seven years since the opening of its first plant.

Statistics from the business council also indicate that Mahindra was the fastest-growing brand overall in the past financial year (April 2024 to March 2025), the brand with the strongest start to 2025, and the overall fastest-growing brand in the 2025 calendar year to date.

Mahindra’s growth comes as most other international automobile manufacturers in the country come under pressure, especially from the burgeoning rise of Chinese marques in South Africa.

To date, Mahindra South Africa has sold over 1,00,000 vehicles.