PSA Peugeot-Citroën’s joint venture with Dongfeng Motor has shipped its first exports from China with the movement of Peugeot 408 models to Egypt. The move follows and agreement signed in September 2010 between the two companies establishing rights for PSA to use China produced vehicles for export to overseas markets. It makes PSA the third global brand to export vehicles from China, following GM and Honda.
However, the small-volume shipment of 120 vehicles does not mark the beginning of regular shipments or establish a fixed export strategy from the joint venture plant to Egypt. Rather, the use of the Chinese joint venture plant was a convenient opportunity to meet the limited demand for the vehicles in Egypt which are sold with different specifications to those exported from Europe said a spokesman for PSA.
Dongfeng Peugeot Citroën Automobile, which is located in Wuhan, is a 50-50 joint venture and builds the Peugeot 307, 207 and 408, as well as the Citroën C4 Quatre, Elysee, C5, C2 and C-Triomphe. In the first five months of 2011 the joint venture sold more than 164,000 vehicles in China and in August it plans to add the Peugeot 508 mid-sized sedan.
The joint venture recently broke ground on its third plant in Wuhan, which will be built in two stages and will lift annual production capacity from 150,000 vehicles in 2013 to 300,000 in 2015.
The plant will include stamping, body-in-white, paint and final assembly lines, along with supply chain, administrative and warehousing facilities.
*In other export news from China, Chery Automobile, China's largest exporter of passenger vehicles, plans to start exporting two more models to Russia this year in the shape of the A13 compact car, which will be sold in sedan and hatchback versions, and the S18D small SUV.
Chery already sells five models in Russia: the Kimo and M11 small cars, the Bonus and CrossStar compact sedans, and the Tiggo SUV.
Through to May, Chery shipped more than 7,000 vehicles to Russia, which is the company’s second-largest overseas market, after Brazil.
Chery said it aims to export 120,000 vehicles in 2011.
