GM venture in China plans $1 billion plant

Associated Press

HONG KONG

General Motors Co. and its joint-venture partners in China say they will spend $1 billion to build a third car plant to keep up with demand for vehicles in the world’s biggest auto market.

The SAIC-GM-Wuling venture said the first phase of the factory will open in 2015.

The plant will be capable of turning out 400,000 vehicles and engines a year. It will help the joint venture reach its goal of producing 2 million vehicles a year in China by 2015. The company said Wednesday it wouldn’t decide which models to make until closer to the start of production.

China has been the world’s biggest auto market by vehicles sold since 2009. Some 18.5 million vehicles were sold in China last year, and automakers expect the number to rise to 30 million by 2020.