KTM 790 Duke to be produced in the Philippines?

MANILA: Production of the motorcycles like Duke 200/390 and RC 200/390 is already in flow at the Laguna plant of KTM Asia Motorcycle Manufacturing Inc. (KAMMI) from as early as 2017. However, Ayala Corp. looks forward expanding the production of KTM motorcycles in the country. As a matter of fact, Ayala Corp. is the official distributor of the Austrian motorcycle brand in the Philippines.

KTM has been planning to spread its manufacturing wings in different countries than just Austria from some time now. A joint venture with CF Moto, which will produce the Austrian brand’s KTM LC8 engine in China, proves the expansion to be real. With the Philippines already having a production line set up, the possibilities are fairly high for the country to get the opportunity of building even more models of KTM.

According to a source, the Laguna plant in the country might get to produce KTM motorcycles like the 790 Duke along with the 790 Adventure and 790 Adventure R, which should be out in the markets soon. Talking about the much bigger motorcycles like the 1290 Duke, GT, and Adventure R will continue to be produced in Austria only. The source also said that “Although we’re not yet on full steam, our current production only takes about 30% for the local market consumption, and the rest are for our ASEAN neighbours”. Majority of the 790 models will be exported to the other ASEAN nations.

The lift up of the taxes on the exports which have at least 30 to 40 % parts that are produced locally may allure the production of bigger bikes in the Philippines even more. The production of bigger and newer models at KTM Asia Motorcycle Manufacturing Inc. (KAMMI) will also provide the Filipinos with more jobs along with helping in boosting the economy.