SAIC-GM-Wuling, a joint venture between GM, Shanghai-based SAIC Motor and Wuling Motor, confirmed on Monday that it would begin building a new factory this year to manufacture Wuling brand vehicles for Indonesia and other Southeast Asian markets, challenging Japanese carmakers’ grip on the region.
At the weekend, Indonesia’s minister for industry said that Wuling would invest $700m in an assembly plant with an initial annual production capacity of 150,000 vehicles. According to the state Antara news agency, production is expected to begin in 2017.
Wuling declined to confirm the value or scale of the investment, saying only that the facility’s “vehicles will be sold primarily in Indonesia, with the potential to export to other [Southeast Asian] markets”.