Economic Observer Online
By Yang Xiaolin (楊小林)
Nov 29, 2012
Translated by Dou Yiping
Original article: [Chinese]

On Nov 28, SAIC GM Wuling Automobile Co. (上汽通用五菱) officially announced that Chongqing would be the site of its third manufacturing base.

The base will start construction early next year with 6.6 billion yuan invested in the first phase. It’s expected to be operational in 2015 with an annual manufacturing capacity of 400,000 vehicles.

After two years’ investigation, Wuling chose Chongqing for its “low cost, high value” advantage. Chang’an Automobile Co. (長安汽車), Wuling’s competitor, also has a large manufacturing presence in the city.

Currently, the annual manufacturing capacity of Wuling’s Liuzhou (柳州) factory is 800,000 vehicles, while its Qingdao (青島) plant has increased its capability to 500,000 since its second phase extension. With the addition of the Chongqing base, Wuling’s annual production capacity is expected to increase to two million cars by the end of 2015.

SAIC GM Wuling dominates China’s minivan market. The company’s annual sales volume reached a record high of 1.22 million units in 2010. The company expects sales to surpass 1.4 million units this year.