Top auto group sets sights on doubling sales of Roewe, MG

SAIC Motor Co Ltd kicked off operations at a new plant for its own-brand cars in the capital of Jiangsu province last week when a Roewe 350 compact sedan rolled off the assembly line.

The 2.6 billion yuan facility will have an annual production capacity of 200,000 cars and 250,000 engines, according China's top auto group, which is also a partner of Volkswagen and General Motors.

SAIC will also produce compact models under its MG brand at the Nanjing plant.

The Shanghai-listed company also has existing facilities in Shanghai and Yizheng, a smaller city in Jiangsu, to make its own-brand cars

The Roewe 350, equipped with a 1.5-liter engine, uses 5.9 liters of gasoline per 100 kilometers at a constant speed of 90 km an hour. It is one of the roomiest models in its segment with a 2,650-mm wheelbase. The sedan is scheduled to go on sale in the next few months.

SAIC didn't reveal how many units of the model it expects to sell this year, but said the Roewe 350 is expected to give a big boost to its overall own-brand sales.

The group aims to double 2009 sales of its own-brand cars to 180,000 units this year. It plans to launch four all-new models in 2010, including a medium-sized sedan, a compact car, a subcompact and a sports utility vehicle (SUV).

SAIC's current passenger car lineup of its own brands includes the Roewe 750 and 550 sedans, the MG6 sedan and the MG 3SW SUV. All were developed based on technologies acquired from failed British carmaker MG Rover.

In 2004 SAIC bought the intellectual rights to the Rover 75 and 25 sedans, and K-series engines, from the defunct British auto icon.

Nanjing Auto, a former partner of Italian carmaker Fiat Auto, purchased the MG brand in 2006 along with a plant in England and Powertrain, the engine unit of MG Rover. At the end of 2007, SAIC took over the struggling Nanjing Auto.

SAIC President Chen Hong said earlier this month that the group plans to sell 3 million vehicles this year, up from 2.72 million units last year.

Besides passenger car joint ventures with General Motors and Volkswagen, SAIC also runs a mini bus tie-up with the US automaker in southern China.