Tengzhong preparing Hummer sales division in Shanghai

Shanghai, August 18 (Gasgoo.com) China's Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Co, the surprise leading bidder for the General Motors' Hummer brand, is preparing to establish a separate sales division in Shanghai for marketing of imported Hummer vehicles, according to a report compiled by Chinese Internet portal Netease.com.

The report said Tengzhong had poached Huang Zhiqiang, vice president of Chery Auto's international business department, to head the upcoming Hummer division in Shanghai, which is not yet registered.

Tengzhong, which signed a memorandum of understanding with GM for the sale of Hummer in early June, said it expects the deal to be completed this September.

The privately held Chinese company said that in the past months the two parties have been talking about many substantive details, some of which have to be discussed and finalized one by one. Media reports say Tengzhong is expected to pay $170 million for the deal, much less than the $500 million that GM had sought last year.