China's Lifan to build car plant in Russia

A Lifan X60 is displayed at the Chongqing auto show, June 11, 2014. [Photo/IC]

MOSCOW - Chinese motorcycle and automobile manufacturer Lifan lndustry (Group) Co Ltd would build a car plant in one of the special economic zones in central Russia, a governmental agent said Tuesday.

"By January 2015, Lifan plans to complete the project's paperwork," a governmental agent of Russian special economic zones said in a statement.

According to the document, Lifan hopes to start production in the central Russian city of Lipetsk in April 2017 with an operation period of at least seven years.

Lifan inked a deal with Lipetsk regional administration in October on the investment of $300 million.

The plant is Lifan's first car plant with a complete assembly cycle in Russia. It is expected to create 1,500 jobs while producing 60,000 cars of different types annually.

Lifan currently occupies slightly over 1 percent of the Russian car market with nearly 22,000 cars sold in 2014. After the plant in Lipetsk starts production, Lifan's share might grow to 1.9 percent.