GM China JV to build microvans in Egypt, India
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BEIJING -- General Motors' Chinese microvan joint venture plans to launch production at two plants in India and Egypt using kits imported from China.
In July, SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile Co. will start producing the C300 microvan in Egypt using knockdown kits shipped from the venture's Qingdao plant, said Karl Slym, the venture's executive vice president.
In August, the joint venture's Indian plant will begin assembling the CN100 with kits supplied by its Liuzhou plant.
"This will give huge growth to our export volume," Slym said last week during a presentation in Beijing.
In China, the C300 is dubbed the Wuling Rongguang, while the CN100 is called the Wuling Hongguang. Both models are five-seat microvans, although the C300 is bigger than the CN100.
With the two CKD plants scheduled to begin production, SGMW expects to export more than 20,000 vehicles this year, up from 14,000 units in 2011, Slym said.
SGMW is headquartered in Liuzhou in southwest China's Guangxi region. SAIC Motor Corp. holds a controlling 50.1 stake, while General Motors holds a 44 percent share. The city of Liuzhou owns the remaining 5.9 percent stake.
As China's largest microvan maker, SGMW sold 1.3 million microvans last year, grabbing a 45 percent share of the domestic microvan segment.
Currently SGMW's major export markets are Egypt, Columbia, Ecuador, Chile and Peru.
You can reach Yang Jian at yangjian@autonewschina.com.
