PSA Peugeot Citroën chief executive officer Jean-Martin Folz and Dongfeng Motor Group Company chairman Xu Ping on Friday laid the cornerstone of the new plant of their joint venture, Dongfeng Peugeot Citroën Automobiles (DPCA), in Wuhan, China.
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The event took place during a French trade visit (a 150-unit order of Airbus planes and a new factory for same was also announced this week) and the new car plant, which is dedicated to the production of vehicles built on PSA’s platform 3, will enable the French brands to expand their line-ups by introducing upper midrange models.
Located on a 63-hectare site near DPCA’s existing plant, the 250,000 square-metre structure will comprise a body-in-white unit, a paint shop and an assembly line. The facility is scheduled to begin operating in 2009 and will produce 150,000 units a year in two shifts.
This latest investment in China has further strengthened DPCA’s fast-expanding production base, which already employs more than 9,000 people. The Wuhan plant currently produces eight different models and is gradually doubling capacity in stages to 300,000 vehicles a year by 2008. To support the growth in DPCA’s automobile production, new engine, gearbox and chassis system capacity is also being added at the mechanical components plant in Xiang Fan, Hubei province.
Following start-up of production on platforms 1 and 2 in China beginning in mid-2004, the new plant will further bolster the implementation of DPCA’s product plan. By the end of the decade, the joint venture will offer a comprehensive model line-up ranging from compact cars to large executive sedans.
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By GlobalDataIn 2006, PSA Peugeot Citröen introduced three new models: the Peugeot 206 in March, the Citroën C4-based C-Triomphe sedan in May and the Citroën C2 five-door compact hatchback in October. All together, 11 model launches are planned between 2006 and 2009.
DPCA sold 145,500 units in the first nine months of 2006, a 38% increase in a market enjoying sustained strong growth (up 38% for the period).
The joint venture’s full-year objective is to sell 200,000 vehicles.
