Beijing Hyundai Motor Company (BHMC), a 50-50 joint venture between South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor and Chinese automaker Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co., held a ground-breaking ceremony for a 400,000 unit/year plant on November 28 in Shunyi District, Beijing.
According to a Hyundai statement, the new plant is scheduled to be completed by July 2012 and combined with its two existing plants which roll out up to 300,000 units each, Hyundai will be capable of producing up to one million units in China by the second half of 2012.
The plant will be built on a 1.6 million m2 site, while it will have a floor space of 300,000 m2, featuring vehicle production facilities such as stamping, welding, painting, assembly and module lines, as well as engine production facilities.
This third plant is scheduled to produce small or mid-size models specifically designed for the Chinese market.
Hyundai established BHMC in 2002, opening its first plant in China. It added a second factory in 2008, doubling its annual production capacity to 600,000 units. So far this year, as of the end of October, BHMC has sold 569,787 units.