FAW Group to roll out 1,600 hybrid cars by 2012

Shanghai, February 26 (Gasgoo.com) FAW Group said it has planned to roll out 1,600 hybrid cars and 800 hybrid buses by 2012, by which time its hybrid vehicle manufacturing base will already start operation, the Beijing Times reported Thursday.

The Changchun-based automaker said its hybrid car facility will have an annual capacity of 11,000 hybrid cars and 1,000 buses by 2012.

FAW said it will increase its spending for research and development (R&D) by 61.45% to 4.23 billion yuan ($619 million) this year despite the financial crisis.

Preciously, the company launched road tests of 12 city hybrid buses in Dalian city in northeastern China's Liaoning province, and another 88 new-energy buses will be added to the city's bus fleet afterwards.

China's central government said last month that it will subsidize purchases of clean-energy vehicles for public service fleets in 13 cities and will provide 10 billion yuan over the next three years to automakers to help update their technology and develop alternative energy vehicles.

Expecting such policy support, several other Chinese auto makers have already launched major plans to make green vehicles. SAIC Motor Corp said last November that it would set up a venture with its state-owned parent to invest 2 billion yuan in developing hybrid and electric vehicles.

In January 2008, SAIC's car venture with General Motors rolled out its first locally produced hybrid car and said it planned to introduce fuel-cell vehicles into China after 2010.

BYD Co launched a plug-in hybrid car F3DM, China's first homegrown electric vehicle, at the end of last year.