(AFP Photo)
By Ahmed Amer
The Ministry of Industry, Trade and Small Industries has removed Nissan Motor Company for spare parts from the virtual transaction registration “white-list” of the General Organization for Exports Imports and Control (GOEIC).
The decision was put under no 125/2015 concerning exclusion of some producers that do not comply with the regulations of the virtual examination on imported non-food goods made by the organisation.
Alaa Al-Nemr, Chairman of the GOEIC’s Central Administration, clarified that the list is only for companies that fulfil the correct conditions concerning manufacturing goods.
Al-Nemr added that the organisation offers companies the advantage of virtual monitoring on imported goods, as long as these goods fulfil the right regulations and the secure criteria concerning manufacturing. The organisation virtually examines a random sample, and decides whether it should be introduced to the Egyptian market or not.
He said that the sample taken from the spare part products imported by Nissan Motors Company did not pass the virtual screening test, and resulted in the discovery of a defect in the parts imported. Al-Nemr emphasised that the decision of writing off the company came after the defect was found on more than one occasion.
He pointed out that the GOEIC will put all the spare parts imported by Nissan Motors Company under thorough examination for a period of at least one year. After this, the company submits a report proving that their imported parts match the standards for it to be removed from the white-list.
Mahmoud Halawa, CEO of Nissan Motors Company in Egypt and North Africa, said that the ministry’s decision to write off the company came as a surprise. He stressed that he is in constant contact with the ministry and all its bodies.
Halawa emphasised that the decision does not affect the company’s production or sales, and that it is a normal decision that happens to most companies producing or importing spare parts.
He added GOEIC’s thorough examination of Nissan’s motor parts before entering the Egyptian market will not constitute a problem or an obstacle to the company, noting that the company tests all its spare parts before offering them to clients.
