Marina Sarruf*
São Paulo – Moroccan company Soriac is interested in establishing a joint venture with company Marcopolo, from the southern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. The deals will be closed by the Portuguese unit of the Brazilian company. This information was disclosed yesterday (12) by the president of Soriac, Chafik Rachadi, who participated in the meeting between Arab and Brazilian businessmen, in the city of São Paulo, in southeastern Brazil.
According to Rachadi, the partnership with Marcopolo Portugal is due to the proximity with Morocco, which will simplify the operation. "Next week a manager of Soriac is going to visit the unit to see how we can establish a partnership," he said.
The intention of the Moroccan company is to import Marcopolo bus bodies to assemble in the North African country, and from there export to the rest of Africa.
Apart from producing bodies, chassis, trucks and buses of its own brand – Soricar -, Soriac also assembles Scania trucks, from Sweden.
"We have plans to start exporting next year. Initially we want to focus on the African market," stated Rachadi. The company currently has partnerships with Mercedes-Benz, Daf (a German lorry producer), Isuzu (Japanese) and Dassault Aviation (a French aircraft maker). "I am now after a Brazilian partner," completed the company president.
Production
According to Rachadi, Soriac produces on average 670 chassis, 220 refrigerated compartments and 110 bodies per year. "We have the capacity to produce much more. The volume varies according to the demand," he said.
The Moroccan company, established in 1989, is located in the city of Berrechid, 14 kilometres away from Casablanca. It is an industrial zone. The family company has 200 employees working in an area of 9,480 square metres.
Marcopolo
Marcopolo has units in seven different countries. Apart from the five company factories in Rio Grande do Sul, Paraná and Rio de Janeiro, the company also has units in Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, South Africa, Portugal and China.
The company is responsible for half of the bus body production in Brazil and sells to around 60 countries. Last year, they sold 6,600 units on the foreign market, out of a total production of 15,500. The company is the leader in the sector in Brazil.
*Translated by Mark Ament
