Local production of KTM 790 line to ensue in Laguna

MANILA: The Philippines will finally see locally made large-displacement motorcycles, courtesy of the KTM Asia Motorcycle Manufacturing Inc. (KAMMI) factory.

Last June 12, KTM Philippines announced in its official Facebook page the production of the KTM 790 family line, which includes the KTM 790 Adventure and KTM 790 Duke motorcycles at its cutting-edge manufacturing plant in Laguna. This also marks the first time that 800cc twin-platform motorcycles will be produced in Asia. 

The manufacture of the 800cc twin-platform motorcycles aims to supplement the growth of Europe’s largest motorcycle producer in the active domestic motorcycle market of the Philippines and the whole ASEAN region, which accounts for over 13 million motorcycle sales yearly.

The KTM 790 Duke is also referred to as “The Scalpel” for its high performance, handling, agility, and ideal power-to-weight ratio. It was rapidly followed by the release of the KTM 790 Adventure, a powerful, compact, and well-recognized travel bike with outstanding abilities for both street and off-the-road utilization. It has also become the leading motorbike in the 800-to-1000cc travel segment.

Import duties have placed strict restrictions on the supply of international motorcycles into ASEAN countries like Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, China, and the Philippines, which in 2019 was able to record more than 1.7 million in motorcycle sales.

President and COO of KAMMI Dino Santos said that it has been the dream of KTM Philippines to produce state-of-the-art motorcycles. Though its business has not been spared from the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, on a positive note, the export demands of the motorcycle company is said to continuously keep them on the move. Currently, the export markets have a contribution of about 80% of the factory output and this gives pride to the Filipinos in terms of world-class motorcycle construction in Asia.

 

Santos also added that this particular industry breakthrough has made the motorcycles of KTM competitive in terms of pricing. Thus, the ownership of a KTM motorcycle equates to showing support for the local motorcycle industry.

Group CEO of AC Industrials Art Tan stated that KAMMI has a collaboration with the Integrated Microelectronics Inc. (IMI) for the production of the KTM 790 CKD family line.

KTM AG also revealed sales of over 280,000 units in 2019, which is more than the annual sales of the Triumph, Ducati, and BMW combined (with nine consecutive year of increase and 7% growth over 2018). It continually grows under the stewardship of the Ayala Group in the country. The goal of KTM AG is to reach the 400,000 units in sales by 2022.

Photos from KTM Philippines

Also read: PH motorcycle firms suspend operations amid quarantine