Xiangfan Auto Industrial Zone Seeks Investment

BEIJING, Sept. 23, 2002 -- Xiangfan Auto Industrial Development Zone, in the northwest of China's central Hubei Province, is the country's sole provincial development zone focusing on auto industry. Established in 1991, the zone covers an area of 48 square kilometers with a population of 65,000.

Some 300 kilometers from the provincial capital of Wuhan, the zone enjoys traffic convenience with the State Highway 316 and two provincial highways passing through the zone. Close to the zone, three express highways are now under construction and the zone is also the juncture of three trunk railways with a large marshalling yard. The zone boasts of its better infrastructure such as the supply of water, power, heating and gas, as well as drainage and communications utilities, which can meet various needs of large companies and consortiums both at home and abroad.

Advocating the conception of introducing advanced technologies, creating eternal brands and providing first-rate service, the zone administration is pursuing the strategy of attracting more projects to the zone. By providing quality services and preferential policies, the administration has also created a fairly competitive and risk-free environment for all the enterprises in the zone for high economic development.

So far, 106 companies have set up their businesses in the zone. They include famous companies such as France's Citroen, Cummins from the US, Japan's Nissan and Yulong from Taiwan and also domestic big companies such as the Luoyang Glass Group, Huayang Group, An'da Group and the Xiangfan Tobacco Group. They have completed their investment of 6.2 billion yuan (about 756 million US dollars), including 162 million US dollars of foreign contractual investment. The zone now has four production bases: auto engines, entire vehicle manufacturing, research and development, and auto parts and accessories.

In 2001, the total industrial output value of the zone reached 7.419 billion yuan (about 927 million US dollars); GDP, 1.3 billion yuan (about 158 million US dollars); and financial revenue, 277 million yuan (about 33.78 million US dollars). The social fixed assets investment was up to seven billion yuan (about 854 million US dollars).

The following are the major projects seeking overseas investment:

1. The Dongfeng Xiangfan Travel Vehicle Company intends to cooperate with overseas companies in joint production of luxury buses and bus chassis by introducing technologies for entire bus, bus chassis and vehicle body.

2. The Cummins industrial park. The Cummins Corporation is teaming with the Dongfeng Automobile Company to work on B+C integration. In 2003, the two companies will set up a factory with an annual production of 150,000 diesel engines for boats and vehicles in line with European II emission standards. The factory will be Cummins' largest diesel engine production base in Asia. In collaboration with the Cummins Corporation, the zone administration intends to create a Cummins industrial park. Overseas investors are welcome to build their businesses in the park in the forms of sole investment, joint venture or cooperative production.

3. The Nissan industrial park. The Dongfeng Automobile Company and the Nissan Company agreed to put an investment of 15 billion yuan (about 1.82 billion US dollars) to build a production base with an annual output of 150,000 cars. The base will put into production in 2003. To promote the smooth progress of the production base, the zone administration intends to set up a Nissan industrial park to attract overseas investors. The forms of cooperation include sole investment, joint venture or cooperative production.

With its preferential polices and best services, the zone administration warmly welcomes overseas investors to set up their businesses in the zone. Xiangfan Auto Industrial Development Zone