China's Chery to make cars in Uruguay from 2007
Tue Nov 14, 2006 10:59am ET
today.reuters.com
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina, Nov 14 (Reuters) - China's Chery Automobile and Argentina's Socma S.A. will start making two car models in Uruguay next year with an initial investment of $100 million, the Argentine group said on Tuesday.
Chery Mercosur, which aims to meet growing demand in South American countries belonging to the Mercosur trade bloc, will import parts from Brazil, Argentina and China. The Chinese firm will hold a 51 percent stake, and the Argentine company the remaining 49 percent.
"In the first stage, which is seen lasting three years, 25,000 cars will be assembled per year and, once sufficient market penetration has been achieved, that goal is expected to expand to 100,000 cars," a Socma spokeswoman said.
"The investment is for $100 million," she said, adding that production of a high-end vehicle called the Tiggo and a mass-market model called the QQ was scheduled to start in the second-half of next year.
Socma, which is one of Argentina's biggest conglomerates, owns a car-assembly plant in the Uruguayan capital Montevideo where Fiat (FIA.MI: Quote, Profile, Research) and Peugeot (PEUP.PA: Quote, Profile, Research) assembled cars in the 1990s.
The Socma spokeswoman said a second-phase envisioned establishing a plant in neighboring Argentina and "analyzing the demand for other Chery projects in the region."
Chery produces some 400,000 vehicles per year and exports to 53 countries, Socma said. |
