China's leading light-commercial-vehicle company, Beiqi Foton, has announced it will build a new production facility in Moscow and make the city its European headquarters.
Beiqi Foton said the new plant in Russia will be able to turn out 100,000 units a year, including light commercial vehicles, pickups, vans, heavy-duty trucks and sport-utility vehicles for European markets.
The latest expansion in Russia is part of Beiqi Foton's five-year plan. By 2015, the carmaker plans to have factories in Russia, Brazil, Mexico, India and Thailand. Earlier this month, the company announced an expansion plan in Mexico. It also aims to enter Europe, North America and Japan while boosting sales of its cars in China.
"We are eying the long-term market potential in Russia," said Wang Jinyu, the company's general manager.
Foton entered the Russian market in 2005 and by the end of 2008, about 10,000 of its commercial vehicles were exported there.
Besides expanding globally, Beiqi Foton has spent $736 million to date on developing alternative-energy vehicles. The company built 5,000 new-energy buses and 400,000 high-efficiency engines last year.
Inside Line says: Foton follows in footsteps of many other ambitious Chinese automakers in going global.
