This file photo provided by SsangYong Motor shows the all-new Torres SUV.
INCHEON, July 5 (Korea Bizwire) — SsangYong Motor Co. launched the all-new Torres SUV in South Korea on Tuesday, a week after a Seoul court approved a local consortium as the final bidder for the debt-laden carmaker.
The SUV-focused carmaker aims to get its business back on track within the next two years based on the Torres and several upcoming new models.
The Torres SUV comes with a 1.5-liter turbocharged gasoline engine and a six-speed automatic transmission. It is priced at 27 million won-30 million won (US$20,800-$23,000), SsangYong said in a statement.
SsangYong has received more than 30,000 preorders for the new SUV since last month, far exceeding its sales target of 16,800 units for the model.
The company plans to export the Torres SUV initially to Chile later this year and then other emerging markets next year.
To further beef up its lineup, SsangYong will launch the electrified version of the Torres late next year.
It also plans to introduce the electrified version of the Korando SUV under the project name “KR10″ and an electrified pickup truck in 2024, court-appointed administrator Chung Yong-won said in a press conference.
“Over the following two years, the company will restore its leading status in the local SUV market based on the strengthened lineup and achieve a business turnaround,” Chung said.
As for the company’s electrification strategy, Managing Director Park Sung-chin said the company will fill most of the lineups with EV models in the Korean and European markets by 2030 but keep some of the lineups as combustion engine models in developing markets, such as the Middle East and Latin America.
SsangYong does not have a plan to develop a new diesel-powered vehicle due to stricter emissions regulations, Park said.
SsangYong has been developing car batteries with Chinese automaker BYD and plans to continue the partnership for its EV models.
Its current product lineup consists of the Tivoli, Korando, Rexton and Rexton Sports SUVs.
Models stand next to the all-new Torres SUV, manufactured by SsangYong Motor Co., during a publicity event in Incheon, around 30 kilometers west of Seoul, on July 5, 2022. The Torres SUV comes with a 1.5-liter turbocharged gasoline engine and a six-speed automatic transmission. (Yonhap)
Last Tuesday, the Seoul Bankruptcy Court approved SsangYong’s decision to select a local consortium led by chemical-to-steel firm KG Group as the final bidder in the latest auction.
The KG consortium reportedly plans to acquire SsangYong for 950 billion won (US$740 million), which includes operating capital of 600 billion won.
KG Group Chairman Kwak Jea-sun said at the media event that the company will have no problems in raising the funds, and it has no layoff plans after acquisition.
SsangYong plans to submit its rehabilitation plan to the court in late July and obtain the court’s approval for the plan in late August.
The company has struggled with weak domestic sales amid a global chip shortage and the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic in recent years.
But its overall sales rose 19 percent to 47,589 vehicles from 40,134 units a year earlier helped by robust exports of its SUV models.
China-based SAIC Motor Corp. acquired a 51 percent stake in SsangYong in 2004 but relinquished its control of the carmaker in 2009 in the wake of the global financial crisis.
In 2011, Mahindra acquired a 70 percent stake in SsangYong for 523 billion won and now holds a 74.65 percent stake in the carmaker.
SsangYong has been under court receivership since April 15, 2021, after Mahindra failed to attract an investor amid the COVID-19 pandemic and its worsening financial status.
Trading of SsangYong shares has been suspended since Dec. 21, 2020. KPMG Samjong declined to offer its opinion for its 2021 financial report due to snowballing losses. SsangYong has posted net losses for six consecutive years through 2021.
(Yonhap)
