Ford announces new flexible assembly plant

Ford Motor Co. announced that its successful joint venture in China, Changan Ford Mazda Automobile (CFMA), is building a new, state-of-the-art and highly flexible passenger car plant in Chongqing, China, scheduled for completion in 2012. The significant investment, valued at US$490 million, underscores Ford’s commitment to aggressively expand in Asia-Pacific and Africa. The highly flexible 1-million-square-meter manufacturing facility will begin production of Ford’s next-generation Ford Focus in 2012 and will be capable of producing a diversified range of products in the future. The new plant initially will be capable of manufacturing 150,000 vehicles per year, increasing annual capacity to 600,000 units by 2012. Over the next three years, Ford will be introducing four new vehicle models for the Chinese market. (September 25, 2009)