Nissan Motor's Chinese venture cuts production amid worsening parts shortage

Production at a Nissan Motor plant in China dwindled dramatically two weeks after Japan's earthquake and tsunami disrupted the supply of key auto parts, sources with the company said Saturday.

Workers at a Dongfeng Nissan plant in central China's Hubei Province told reporters that Saturday's production level at the assembly workshop dropped to less than one-third of the normal level.

"We used to assemble 304 cars a day, but today our plan is set at 82," said a worker who declined to give his name.

"And our work time was cut to half a day to accommodate the production," he added.

Japanese automotive joint ventures in China get 60 to 70 percent of their parts locally, while key parts like engines and transmissions are imported from Japan.

Many Japanese car manufacturers shut down operations after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami damaged factories and infrastructure and delayed shipments of raw materials.

Dongfeng Nissan, a joint venture with China's Dongfeng Motor Corp., previously said that it had enough parts in its inventory to sustain production for the rest of March, but supplies for April were uncertain.

The joint venture churned out more than 700,000 Nissan-brand vehicles in 2010, accounting for about 60 percent of Dongfeng Motor's total output.