Daimler to triple Beijing JV capacity
Daimler AG, parent of German luxury car brand Mercedes-Benz, will triple the production capacity at its Beijing joint venture amid skyrocketing local demand, China Daily reported Tuesday.
The capacity of Beijing Benz-Daimler Chrysler Automotive Co. Ltd. (BBDC), a joint venture between Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co. Ltd., Daimler AG and Daimler North East Asia Ltd., would be raised to 75,000 to 100,000 units per year, depending on shift patterns, the newspaper said, citing Ulrich Walker, chairman and CEO of Daimler Northeast Asia.
According to Walker, BBDC has increased the localization rate of Mercedes cars to 45 to 50 percent and identified 85 new China-based suppliers and worked with them to support the local production.
Walker estimated that Daimler will sell more than 70,000 cars, vans and trucks in China this year, more than a 50 percent increase over last year. For the coming year, he expected sales would increase at a faster rate than the 15 to 20 percent of China's automobile market.
He said the company would introduce four or five new Mercedes models next year and expand the dealerships from the current 141 to 180.
