A worker is busy on the production line of new energy vehicles (NEVs) at a factory of Chinese automaker Chery Holding Group Co., Ltd. in Wuhu City, east China's Anhui Province, Oct. 12, 2022. From January to July this year, the city of Wuhu manufactured 156,100 NEVs, up 130.2 percent year on year. The sales of NEVs totaled 137,900 units, an increase of 36.8 percent year on year.(Photo: Xinhua)

Chinese automaker Chery announced an investment of $400 million in Argentina to build an auto factory, supported by local lithium extraction industry, the Argentine Embassy to China reported on its WeChat account.

By 2030, the annual production capacity of the auto plant in Argentina will reach 100,000 and generate 6,000 direct local jobs. 

Chery vowed to build the Argentine factory which will become a regional center of new-energy vehicle (NEV) on the basis of local abundant lithium resource, which will further cover the Latin American market together with Chery's factory in Brazil that is already in operation, the embassy said. 

Chinese battery maker Gotion High-tech has agreed to supply batteries to Chery from its factory in northern Argentina which was co-built with a local mineral company. Aside from supplying battery to Chery's Argentine factory, Gotion High-tech will also ship batteries to overseas markets including Germany, India, the US, Spain and Vietnam. 

A representative group from Chery was scheduled to arrive in Argentina before March to confirm the final plan of the construction of the auto factory, the embassy said. 

In January 2023, China and Argentina expanded a currency swap deal, further intimating economic ties between the two countries. The swap comprises the exchange of currency for reinforcement of international reserves of 130 billion yuan ($19.2 billion) and a special activation of 35 billion yuan to compensate operations on the foreign exchange market, the embassy said.

Experts said that the swap expansion can help Argentina hedge the negative impact of US interest rates hikes and Argentina's insufficient industrial capability, while benefitting China-Argentina bilateral investment and trade.

Global Times