Beijing Automotive news

[CCF mod]

Government OKs Beijing Auto's overall listing plan.

February 4, 2008 – The State-owned Asset Supervision and Management Commission of Beijing City Government has in principle approved Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Corp overall listing plan, local newspaper reported today.

Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Corp or Beijing Auto Group has submitted its overall listing plan to China Securities Regulatory Commission for final approval.

Beijing Auto Group consists of three auto making companies: Beiqi Foton, Beijing Hyundai and Beijing-Benz-Daimlerchrysler.

Last year, Beiqi Foton sold 400,000 vehicles, up 16.9 percent from one year earlier. The sales figure has made the Chinese automaker world second largest commercial vehicle maker after Mercedes-Benz.

Beijing Hyundai sold 231,137 vehicles in Chinese market, a significant decrease from one year earlier. However, with the opening of its second plant earlier this year, Beijing Hyundai hopes to sell 380,000 vehicles this year.

Beijing-Benz-Daimlerchrysler sold a total 21,181 vehicles in Chinese market last year, which include 7,959 Chrysler 300 C vehicles, 6,020 Mitsubishi Outlander vehicles and 6,882 Mercedes-Benz E class vehicles.

Separately, Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Corp (BAIC) is also planning to build a new automobile manufacturing base with a total investment of 2 billion Yuan ($275.6 million) in southern China's Hunan province.

Xu Heyi, chairman of Beijing Auto or Beiqi in Chinese, has reportedly decided on the location for the new plant, 60 kilometers off Changsha, capital city of Hunan, where Beiqi has already set up a manufacturing base. The new plant, which is scheduled to start operation in 2010, has an initial capacity of 200,000 vehicles per annum.

Upon the completion of the production unit in Zhuzhou,by the year 2010, Beiqi will have a combined capacity of 1.5 million vehicles.

Vehicles to be produced in Zhuzhou will include light-duty trucks and buses, pickups and sports utility vehicles (SUVs). It's not clear whether Beiqi's self-developed Beijing-branded sedans could be assembled there, but company source said that low-end products in Beiqi's portfolio will be produced in Zhuzhou.

source: Gasgoo.com

[mrgq]

i think this is a realitic goal for them

Mar. 5, 2008 (China Knowledge) - Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co (BAIHC), Chinese partner of Daimler Chrysler as well as Hyundai Motor, has set a target of selling 1 million vehicles this year via capacity expansion and acquisitions, said Xu Heyi, Chairman of the Beijing-based company in a media statement.

Beijing Auto, the controlling shareholder of truck maker Beiqi Foton Motor<600166>, plans to list its major car production assets on the domestic bourse to raise more than RMB 2 billion (US$282 million) to fund the expansion, according to Xu.

The solely Chinese-funded company may consider floating the assets separately, rather than injecting them into Beiqi Foton, Xu said, but no timetable was available yet.

BAIHC will be devoted to double the annual sales to 2 million units in two years, Xu added.

Currently, the auto maker produces cars under many international brands such as Hyundai, Chrysler, Benz, Jeep as well as well-known national brands like Beijing and Foton.

source:chinaknowledge.com/News/news-detail.aspx?type=1&id=13742

[fasteronline]

This seems to be a pretty good news keeping in mind the growth of Chinese economy.The beauty of these Chinese car makers is that they don't push all the hidden cost to the consumers.

[CCF mod]

Chrysler to divide production and sales in China.

July 30, 2008 - Chrysler LLC and Beijing Benz-DaimlerChrysler Automotive Co., Ltd. (BBDC) are walking far apart, Oriental Morning Post reported today. Chrysler LLC will separate the production and sales of locally-produced Chrysler models in China after the Summer Olympics, with BBDC producing Chrysler 300C and Sebring models and Chrysler Group (China) responsible for the sales.

Chrysler will control the sales, marketing, products revamp and other operations after the production and sales separate, a Chrysler dealer disclosed. Chrysler is collecting suggestions for its new dealerships and is expected to announce the project in September or later, a source close to the matter said.

Chrysler 300C has posted zero production in two consecutive months. In the first half, Chrysler 300C had only 822 units produced and 2,654 units sold, down 17% year on year, which caused the rumour about Chrysler 300C’s production suspension.

However, the production of Chrysler 300C will not be suspended as a large stock of components now remain in the factory and Chrysler has decided to recontrol the sales, according to sources.

source: Gasgoo.com

[dragin]

Ah, another Gasgoo echo.....but here with the chance to comment.

We have all been wondering how the distribution of assets would shake out after the recent break up of the 1999 DCX merger.

But can this be, that Daimler will be responsible for the production of Chrysler cars in China? This comes on the heals of an end to Jeep production. And the Americans must be crying, OUCH

[mememe]

Beijing Auto builds new vehicle base in Hunan

August 28, 2008


Shanghai, August 28 (Gasgoo.com) Beijing Automotive Industry Co held a ground-breaking ceremony Tuesday for construction of its new vehicle production base in the city of Zhuzhou, Hunan province, Xinhua reported today.

Beijing Auto will invest a total of 5 billion yuan ($731 million) in the project, which will have a capacity of 200,000 vehicles after its construction is completed in March 2010. Annual sales revenue to be generated by this new facility is projected at more than 15 billion yuan.

Beijing Auto is the parent company of Beiqi Foton Motor Co and has tie-up with Hyundai Motor Co and Daimler AG. Last year the automaker sold 695,000 vehicles and achieved sales revenue of 65 billion yuan.

The Beijing car-maker aims to sell 1.8 million vehicles by 2010, with its output capacity reaching 2 million units.

http://www.gasgoo.com/auto-news/1007...-in-Hunan.html

[mememe]

BAIC builds Zhuzhou plant for own-brand PVs


September 26, 2008


Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Corp. (BAIC) has recently started building a new plant in central China’s Hunan province. The plant will produce BAIC’s own brand passenger vehicles from 2010.

The new plant is located in Zhuzhou, an industrial city in eastern Hunan province.

A BAIC spokesman says BAIC chose Zhuzhou for the strong local parts supply base as well as its vicinity to markets in southern and eastern China.

The spokesman says the Zhuzhou plant will eventually have annual capacity of 200,000 units.

Total investment in the plant will be about 5 billion yuan ($731 million). The plant will have a floor area of some 530,000 square meters.

"Its products will include light trucks, pickups, light buses, SUVs and vans", the spokesman says, adding that the plant will start production sometime in 2010.

A source involved in the planning of the Zhuzhou plant says the new plant is scheduled to start operation in March 2010.

The source adds the new plant will mainly produce passenger vehicles.

He says once the new plant is put into use, BAIC will shift production of the models currently being built in its Beijing plant to the new plant. The Beijing plant makes a series of SUVs, pickups, light trucks and buses at present.

"The Beijing plant will mainly produce vehicles for the military in the future", he says.

He also says BAIC is likely to produce sedans in the Zhuzhou plant. A report the Beijing municipal government released earlier this year also i ndicates the products to be made in the new plant include sedans.

But the BAIC spokesman denies BAIC plans to make sedans in the Zhuzhou plant.

The source says the new plant’s planned annual output in 2010 is between 50,000 units and 70,000 units. The figure is expected to reach 200,000 units in 2013, he adds.

In addition to its own plant, BAIC has two joint-venture automakers making passenger vehicles at present: Beijing Benz-DaimlerChrysler Automotive Co. and Beijing Hyundai Motor Co. Both joint ventures are located in suburban Beijing.

http://www.gasgoo.com/auto-news/1007...brand-PVs.html

[kugmo]

This is quite a goal their setting but with the steady growth of the Chinese economy this might be attained.

[mememe]

Beijing Auto to spend 10 bln yuan on 3 projects

December 02, 2008
Shanghai, December 2 (Gasgoo.com) In the coming few months, Beijing Automobile Industries Holding Co (Beijing Auto, Beiqi) will invest 10 billion yuan ($1.47 billion) in three key projects, said xinhuanet.com today.

According to Xu Heyi, chairman of Beijing Auto, the 10 billion yuan will be invested into the own-brand passenger vehicle development, Foton-Cummins Engine venture, and Foton-Daimler Heavy Truck venture. This move is seen as part of China's current massive investment efforts to stimulate the sluggish economy.

Beijing Foton Cummins Engine, a 50-50 joint venture of Foton and Cummins, has launched a diesel-engine-making project, with its total investment exceeding 2.7 billion yuan for an annual capacity of 400,000 units. The factory will produce mainly Cummins' light-duty, high-performance 2.8-L and 3.8-L clean diesel engines, which will meet emission standards including Euro IV and China III.

In early August, Daimler AG and Beiqi Foton signed a letter of intent to form a 50-50 trucks joint venture. The deal, if materialized, will help the JV sell medium- and heavy-duty trucks in China and in overseas markets under Foton's Auman brand. The JV is awaiting the government approval and may kick off by mid-2009.

Beijing's future auto industry will carry on the "cultural, technological and green" traditions of the 2008 Beijing Olympics by developing user-friendly, eco-friendly and fuel-efficient own-brand vehicle models, Xu said. It is Chinese auto industry's top priority to make new-energy vehicles to cut emissions and fuel consumption.

By 2010, Beijing Auto, who now has joint ventures Beijing Hyundai Motor Co., Ltd. and Beijing Benz-DaimlerChrysler Automotive Co., Ltd. (BBDC), is expected to reach an annual capacity of 2 million vehicles and annual sales of 1.8 million units with 15% market share (in China).

http://www.gasgoo.com/auto-news/1008...-projects.html

[mememe]

Beijing Auto in talks to buy Chery technologies

January 13, 2009

Shanghai, January 13 (Gasgoo.com) Beijing Automotive Industry Corp (BAIC) is in negotiations with Chery Automobile to buy two units of Chery's self-developed B-segment car models and related technologies, the Economic Observer reported on Monday, citing informed sources.

Senior officials from Chery Auto confirmed that BAIC is indeed holding talks with Chery about possible cooperation, but they have nothing to announce currently.

Industry analysts say such an agreement would mean BAIC paying at least 50 to 100 million yuan transaction fees for Chery, which is much cheaper than buying complete car development technologies from foreign automakers.

BAIC has planned to launch its self-developed SUV and sedan models to the market in 2010. It will build two crossover vehicle platforms and four passenger vehicle platforms, according to BAIC's new product strategy. As the time is pressing, BAIC is hoping to take advantage of Chery's B-segment car technologies to launch its own-brand cars.

On December 30, 2008, BAIC signed a deal with Beijing Automobile Assembly Co., Ltd. to restructure Beijing Automobile Works Co., Ltd. (BAW). BAIC will become a majority shareholder (51%) of BAW and thus make it a manufacturing base of crossover vehicles.

http://www.gasgoo.com/auto-news/1009...hnologies.html