Pickup maker Gonow to build $590 mln plant

Chinese pickup truck maker Gonow Group Co plans to invest 4 billion yuan ($590 million) to build a production base in eastern China with annual capacity of 300,000 units, its president said on Friday.

The company, with current production capacity of about 30,000 units a year, has already started construction on the first phase of the project in Dongying (Shandong province), with capacity of 150,000 pickups per year, Miao Xuezhong told media on the sidelines of an investment forum.

The first 50,000 units of capacity will be on-stream in the first half of next year, Miao said, although he did not indicate when the project would be completed. "We will build up the project in phases.

The total cost is estimated at 4 bn yuan," he said. Gonow is funding the project in the city of Dongying, in Shandong province, from its internal resources but Miao said he would not rule out bringing in outside investors.