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The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) has announced that it is seeking bids for its majority stake in Peugeot Automobile Nigeria (PAN) Limited, the Kaduna-based joint venture with French automaker Peugeot Citroen.

In a statement released on Tuesday, AMCON said interested investors could bid to acquire its 79.3 percent stake in PAN Nigeria, which has the capacity to assemble 240 cars a day.

AMCON, which was created in 2010 to absorb non-performing bank loans, acquired majority stake in PAN Nigeria in 2012 after taking over the company’s debts worth about N30 billion owed to some Nigerian banks.

Founded in 1972 as joint venture between the federal government and Peugeot Citroen, PAN Nigeria was once the dominant car manufacturers in Nigeria with an annual production of 90,000 vehicles. However, the company ran into troubles after the government sold off its majority stake in 2006 and reduced its patronage. The company’s revenues declined from N30 billion in 2007 to less than N2 billion in 2013 while sales declined from 12,000 vehicles in 2007 to less than 1,000 vehicles in 2013.

According to AMCON, PAN Nigeria has assets of about N24.96 billion and equity of about N11.98 billion as at December 2014. Potential investors must have experience in automobile manufacturing and bids close on January 26th at 1600 GMT.

Nigeria has been trying to revive its automotive industry, which thrived in the 1970s but later floundered due to inconsistent government polices and reliance on imported pre-owned cars. The imported foreign-used cars market in Nigeria is estimated at about $4 billion annually, according to the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC).

In 2014, the federal government launched the National Automotive Industry Development Plan, which seeks to transform Nigeria into a hub of automobile assembly in Africa by 2020. The policy slashes import duties for completely knocked down parts (CKD) and semi-knocked down parts (SKD).

Over 35 global carmakers – such as Ford, Hyundai, Toyota, etc. – have acquired licenses to build assembly plants in Nigeria since the policy was launched. The NADDC estimates that these global car companies have already spent up to $128 million (N25.4 billion) to buy land and equipment for their factories.

Chibuike Oguh is Financial Nigeria's Frontier Markets Analyst