SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2002
Honda to build $193 mn auto plant in China
AP
TOKYO: Honda Motor Co. said Friday it had received approval to build a $193 million factory in China - its second in the emerging auto market of Asia's most populous country.
Honda's new plant will be constructed in China's southeastern city of Guangzhou and have an annual production capacity of 50,000 small passenger cars, Honda spokesman Tetsuya Ikeda said.
Ikeda said the facility will specialize in passenger cars with an engine capacity of 1-1.5 liters and that the vehicles will be exported to Europe and much of Asia.
It will be the first exclusively export-oriented passenger car plant in China, with its production slated to begin in the second half of 2004, he said.
Honda will take a 65 percent stake in the new venture, while its Chinese partners, Guangzhou Auto Group Corp. and Dongfeng Motor Corp. will hold 25 percent and 10 percent, respectively, Ikeda said.
Honda, Japan's second-largest automaker, is the first foreign company to have a controlling stake in an auto manufacturing venture in China, he said.
Its existing factory in China is also in Guangzhou.
General Motors of the United States and Germany's Volkswagen are among other foreign automakers producing cars in China. Japan's two other major automakers - Toyota Motor and Nissan Motor - have announced plans to produce passenger cars in separate projects in China.
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