Leapmotor and Uzbekistan strengthen partnership through factory audit and distribution agreement
Leapmotor, a Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer, has confirmed that it will continue its operations in Uzbekistan through an official distributor, as reported by the UzTest Center under the Technical Regulation Agency. The company has made it clear that it will not recognize vehicles imported unofficially into the country.
Initially, the import of Leapmotor vehicles to Uzbekistan was prohibited, but it was later allowed under the condition of formal cooperation between the Chinese company and Uzbek authorities. On April 13, Leapmotor Automobile Co. Ltd. sent an official letter to the Uzbek Technical Regulation Agency and UzTest Center, acknowledging the unauthorized import of their C16 model into Uzbekistan and expressing their readiness to address the issue.
In their letter, Leapmotor outlined several commitments, including continuing operations in Uzbekistan solely through an officially appointed distributor, not recognizing vehicles imported without authorization, conducting a technical audit at their production facility with the participation of UzTest specialists, completing the testing process for obtaining the vehicle type approval certificate, and establishing a long-term partnership with UzTest for quality control.
In late March, Uzbekistan temporarily suspended the import of all Leapmotor vehicles after a defect was found in a Leapmotor C16 electric car imported by a private individual. However, by April 14, another C16 model was tested with the presence of a Leapmotor representative, resulting in the conditional lifting of the ban based on a positive test outcome. In return, Leapmotor was required to appoint an official representative in Uzbekistan, submit necessary documentation for type approval of imported models, and allow inspection and evaluation of their production processes and conditions at their manufacturing facilities.
The upcoming technical audit at the Leapmotor factory in China by UzTest specialists within the next two weeks signals a step towards resolving the issues and strengthening the partnership between Leapmotor and Uzbekistan. This move highlights the commitment of both parties to ensuring the quality and compliance of Leapmotor vehicles in the Uzbek market.
