Chinese-owned automotive company MG Motor has announced plans to build a manufacturing plant and research and development center in Mexico.
Zhang Wei, president of MG Motor México, announced the plans on Wednesday in a statement that highlighted that the company has now sold 150,000 vehicles in Mexico just four years after entering the market.
“Looking to the future, we’re excited to announce plans to establish Mexico as a hub for Latin America. This includes not just a manufacturing plant, but also a research and development center,” Zhang said.
“This move will allow us not only to produce vehicles, but also generate market intelligence specifically designed for and by Latin America,” he said.
Zhang didn’t say how much MG planned to invest in the plant and R & D Center, where the facilities would be located or when construction will commence.
However, the El Economista newspaper reported that the plant will be located in central Mexico or the Bajío region and produce 100,000 vehicles per year in an initial phase of operations.
MG makes internal combustion engine vehicles as well as electric and hybrid models.
Reuters reported earlier this year that pressure from United States authorities had led the Mexican government to refuse to offer incentives to Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers planning to invest in Mexico. United States presidential candidate Donald Trump has pledged to impose heavy tariffs on cars manufactured in Mexico by Chinese companies if he returns to the White House next January.
The announcement by MG — a company established in the United Kingdom in 1924 and acquired by state-owned Chinese company SAIC Motor Corp in 2007 — comes after major Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer BYD confirmed in February that it will open a plant in Mexico. BYD Americas CEO Stella Li said that the company’s Mexico plant will only make vehicles for the Mexican market, not for export to the United States or other countries.
Zhang said that the decision to establish an MG/SAIC plant in Mexico demonstrates “our commitment to stay and prosper” in the Mexican market and “our dedication to our customers and the country.”
He said MG’s aim is to “make Mexico a pole for growth and expansion for SAIC Group and MG Motor in Latin America and the Caribbean.”
Zhang also said that MG stablemate IM (Intelligent Mobility) is planning to sell its premium electric vehicles in Mexico.
With reports from El Financiero, El Economista, Reuters, El CEO and AS
