VW to Establish Two New Plants in China, Targets Sales of 2 Million

Volkswagen AG will build two more plants in China as it targets sales of 2 million units annually.

The auto maker is increasing its investment by €1.6 billion ($2.1 billion) with the two plants, as well as other projects, CEO Martin Winterkorn tells the Xinhua government news agency.

VW’s sales in China rose 36.7% to 1.4 million units in 2009. First-quarter sales this year were up 60.9% to 457,259 units, accounting for 26% of VW's global sales of 1.73 million.

“Growth in China has exceeded all expectations,” Winterkorn is quoted as saying.

The news agency says the most recent investment is in addition to the €4.4 billion ($5.9 billion) VW announced in 2009 to expand capacity and develop new products in China by 2012.

Head of VW’s China operations Winfried Vahland says the auto maker will introduce new models and the latest technologies to China.