Discovering unexplored China with Land Rover

NANJING -- A joint venture between Chinese automaker Chery and UK-based Jaguar Land Rover commenced production on Tuesday, churning out the first China-made Land Rover vehicle.

The launch of Chery Jaguar Land Rover Automotive Co Ltd in Changshu city in east China's Jiangsu province marked the localization of the two UK brands Jaguar and Land Rover.

Built with an investment of 10.9 billion yuan (about $1.8 billion), the plant has been designed with an annual production capacity of 130,000 vehicles. Of the total, 34,000 Land Rover Evoque SUVs, 43,000 Land Rover Freelander 2 vehicles, 30,000 Jaguar sedans and 23,000 of the company's self-developed vehicles will be produced.

Zhu Guohua, vice president of the company, said the company plans to launch 10 self-developed models in the next five years.

On Tuesday, the company also launched its independent vehicle research and development center.

Zhu said the assembly plant boasts world-class automobile production facilities. In the plant's welding workshop, 85 percent of the work will be performed by 306 robots.