Great Wall targets growth
- Source: Global Times
- [16:48 December 08 2010]
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By Li Woke
Great Wall Motor Company (GW), with a current output of 500,000 vehicles per year, released a five-year strategic plan on its website saying production capacity in 2015 would reach two million units.
The high-profile plan says car sales will increase to 1.8 million units in 2015, 30 percent of which will be exports, and one production base will be built each year with the capacity to manufacture at least 300,000 vehicles.
"By 2011, Great Wall will build a production base with a capacity of up to 300,000 in Tianjin, and in 2013, another plant with a 500,000 (unit) capacity in Baoding," said Zhao Lijia, GW's media director.
GW, based in Baoding, Hebei Province, is China's first private automaker to be listed on the Hong Kong stock market.GW sold 225,000 cars in 2009, including 50,000 that were exported, mainly to the Middle East and South America. GW has been the top Chinese auto exporter over the past nine years.
Rivals BYD and Chery have come out with production plans to build 700,000 to 800,000 cars annually, pressuring other independent Chinese brands.
"Because of severe competition in the Chinese auto market, we decided to improve our production capacity," Zhao said. "But we will operate gradually by hiring more innovative technicians without sacrificing quality."
In the next three years, Great Wall will invest 1 billion yuan ($146 million) into technology research and 4 billion yuan in product development, according to its plans.
