Volvo's China plant goes operational

A birds' eye view of Volvo's China plant in Chengdu. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

CHENGDU -- Volvo's first China plant began operations on Wednesday in the southwestern city of Chengdu after the Swedish automaker was acquired by its Chinese peer, Geely Motor.

Located in the economic and technological development zone in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province, the plant has a full assembly line for body framing, welding, painting and general assembly, with first-phase annual capacity of 100,000 vehicles.

The plant also consists of affiliated facilities such as a quality check center, logistics center, and an independent test track.

A longer version of the Volvo S60L sedan, specifically modified for the Chinese market, will be assembled at the plant. The car will be put into mass production by the end of the year, according to a strategic plan released by Geely earlier.

Another sports utility vehicle, the Volvo XC60, will also be assembled at the plant later.

Geely acquired Volvo Cars Corp from US auto giant Ford Motor for $1.5 billion in August 2010.

The company sold a total of 263,500 vehicles in the first half of the year, up 19 percent year on year.