South Korea's top automaker Hyundai Motor Co and its Chinese partner broke ground on Sunday for a third plant to ease their undercapacity in the world's largest auto market.
Bejing Hyundai, a tie-up between Hyundai and major Chinese state auto group Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co (BAIC), is expected to sell about 700,000 cars in China this year, up some 23 percent from 2009 and above current capacity of 600,000 units, BAIC chairman Xu Heyi said.
"When the third plant is up and running, Beijing Hyundai will speed up the introduction of Hyundai's medium-to-high end models to further expand its portfolio," Xu told government dignitaries and company executives at the site of the plant.
The facility on the outskirts of Beijing will give the partners 300,000 units of new capacity annually in July 2012, rising to 400,000 units eventually, Xu said.
Hyundai, which made further inroads into the United States in 2009, has also been gaining ground in China, one of its fastest growing major markets.
Beijing Hyundai sold 59,287 cars in China in October, up 23 percent year on year.