A few months ago we reported on Jaguar Land Rover’s plans to partner with the Chinese company Chery Automobile, using their facilities to produce Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles. China’s National Development and Reform commission has recently approved the joint venture, seven months after the idea was originally proposed.
The $1.89 billion venture put in place a manufacturing plant as well as a research and development facility in the city of Changshu in China’s Jiangsu province. Jaguar Land Rover and Chery plan to have the plant fully operational by 2014 where they will be able to produce 130,000 vehicles annually. While most of the vehicles produced will be Jaguars and Land Rovers, the facility will also produce certain Chinese makes as well.
The move comes at an opportune time for Jaguar Land Rover, as unit sales through the first nine months of this year have risen 80% since last years figures. The focus on development in China reflects parent company Tata Motor’s continued investment in their Jaguar Land Rover subsidiary, who recently doubled their investment in JLR to 1.5 billion pounds per year. Beijing Youth Daily, a Chinese publication, estimates that the new Chery facility will result in a 20% price decrease for Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles sold in China. If this report proves true, Jaguar Land Rover can expect continued sales growth in one of their brightest emerging markets.
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