Peru produces motorcycle taxis, although it's important to distinguish between assembling them in the country and manufacturing all their parts.
Industrial production: Honda Selva del Perú has a plant in Iquitos, operational since 2007, where it produces motorcycles and three-wheeled vehicles, including the well-known Honda Motokar.
Peruvian components: There are also local suppliers that manufacture metal accessories for motorcycle taxis and seat foam, among other elements.
Imported parts: A significant portion of the components comes from abroad. In a 2023 interview, Honda indicated that approximately 10% of the parts for its three-wheeled vehicles were locally produced; that percentage corresponds to that time.
Therefore, motorcycle taxi production does exist in Peru, combining local assembly and manufacturing of some parts with imported components. This does not mean that these vehicles are entirely manufactured with Peruvian parts.
Is the production and trade of mototaxis significant in terms of quantity and value?
Yes, it is an important economic activity, especially due to its sales, employment, and local transportation. Its commercial dimension is greater than the manufacture of domestic components.
To appreciate its scale, these are the sales figures for new three-wheeled vehicles, a category that includes passenger mototaxis and cargo vehicles:
Sales in 2024: 102,213 units
Sales in 2025: 129,395 units
Annual growth: 26.6%
Monthly average in 2025: 10,783 units
In 2025, three-wheeled vehicles represented 30.4% of combined motorcycle and three-wheeled vehicle sales in Peru, according to the Motolatam bulletin with information from the Peruvian Automotive Association. These figures represent sales, not national production.
How much money does this represent? No data is available, but for reference, a Honda Motokar is advertised at an indicative price of S/10,000, subject to location and conditions. If that price were hypothetically applied to the 129,395 three-wheeled vehicles sold in 2025, the result would be S/1.294 billion. This is an illustrative calculation of scale, not an official revenue figure, because prices and vehicle types vary.
Local production also operates on an industrial scale. In 2023, Honda reported that its Iquitos plant had a capacity of 31,000 three-wheeled vehicles and 33,000 motorcycles annually. These are capacities for that plant in that year, not current figures for actual production or the total for Peru.
Peru has a considerable market and an industrial base that could be further developed. In addition to selling vehicles, this activity supports workshops, spare parts, and transportation services. The opportunity to increase its industrial contribution lies in manufacturing more parts within the country: Honda had already indicated plans to replace some of its imported components with production in Iquitos.
AN UNEXPECTED BOOST?
Many Venezuelans living in Peru are returning to their country permanently, taking all their belongings in their motorcycle taxis. Thinking a bit further ahead, could this movement be the beginning of an export process for Venezuela and then Latin America? Because the motorcycle taxi is an inexpensive mode of transport and therefore ideal for many communities in the region.
The returnees could help promote the vehicle and create business contacts if they actually take them and use them for work. Knowing how to maintain them, showing them to other drivers, and demanding spare parts could open up opportunities. That's a reasonable business hypothesis.
And very importantly, the returnees would have immediate work providing local transportation services at very low prices, something Venezuela needs right now.
If successful, this would mark the beginning of a miracle for the Peruvian motorcycle taxi industry, with exports throughout Latin America.
Don't you think that Venezuelans returning to their country in motorcycle taxis should receive support from related companies and the Peruvian government itself?
No hay comentarios:
Publicar un comentario