China’s Great Wall Opens SUV Plant in Russia

China’s Great Wall Motor Co. says it will begin making Haval F7 crossover vehicles at a new factory in central Russia later this month.

The facility has a design capacity of 150,000 vehicles per year. Great Wall Chairman Wei Jianjun tells investors in Beijing the facility’s employment will jump from 700 currently to 4,000 as production ramps up. Wei says Great Wall has exported 120,000 vehicles to Russia to date.

The Chinese company announced plans for the Russian factory five years ago, originally expecting to launch production in 2017. But the project was delayed when Russia’s auto market collapsed. Great Wall revived the construction plan in 2016, announcing a new launch date for 2018.