Chinese-German Carmaker to Double Output

State-controlled Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp (SAIC) expects to double its annual production capacity to two million units by 2010, Chinese state press reported Friday. SAIC will double its capacity during the eleventh five-year plan to two million vehicles, Hu Maoyuan, SAIC chairman, was quoted as telling the Shanghai Securities News. SAIC, the parent of listed Shanghai Automotive Co. will achieve production capacity of 1.02 million units at the end of 2005, the report said. South Korea's Sangyong Motor Co, in which SAIC acquired a 48.9 percent stake last year, will contribute 140,000 units to that figure. The majority of SAIC sales come from its Shanghai General Motors, a joint venture with US giant GM, which sold 252,000 cars last year, while SAIC GM Wuling sold 225,000 minivans. SAIC's joint venture with Germany's Volkswagen sold 355,000 cars last year. The group does not produce its own cars but has said it is aiming to build its own by 2007, which would be a worrying sign for foreign auto manufacturers that Chinese carmakers could be preparing to go it alone.