Malaysia's Proton To Identify Foreign Strategic Partner By First Half 2017 - Minister Mustapa

SHAH ALAM (Selangor, Malaysia), Aug 24 (Bernama) -- Proton Holdings Bhd, the Malaysian car manufacturer is expected to identify its foreign strategic partner by the first half of next year. Malaysian International Trade and Industry Minister, Mustapa Mohamed, said a timeframe must be given to the company as the move to secure a strategic partner required careful evaluation. He said the selection of the right strategic partner to help drive Proton to a higher level was seen as a huge effort that needed to be done by the national car manufacturer. "For the government, we have already helped in the form of a soft loan and one of the conditions that Proton must comply with is to seek a foreign strategic partner. "I am made to understand that by the first half of next year, Proton will be able to identify its strategic partner...this is certainly a huge effort and a lot of discussions must be done," he told reporters after launching the second generation Persona (the latest Proton model) here Tuesday. Mustapa said the government would not get involved with all the decisions made by Proton to choose a foreign company as its strategic partner. Previously, several renowned foreign automotive companies were reported to have shown interest to become Proton's strategic partner, and the government would leave it to the company to make its own choice to restore its performance. The government has also approved Proton's application for a soft loan of US$371.39 million (RM1.5 billion) to help regularise its cash flow. --BERNAMA