Central Glass and Saint-Gobain to Establish Joint Venture in China

Central Glass and Saint-Gobain have announced that they will together construct an auto glass manufacturing plant in China. The facility will be created through a holding company in Japan, also to be established as part of the joint venture, according to a joint statement from both companies.

The plant will be built on Saint-Gobain’s property in Qingdao in the Shandong Province with an investment of approximately $68.8 million (USD) ($17.9 million at the time of establishment) “to accommodate demand from the Chinese automotive market, which has been growing at a fast rate.”

The companies expect the investment in the plant to be implemented in three phases between 2011 and 2014, and the plant will have a manufacturing capacity of 1.5 million units of glass annually upon its completion.

Work on the plant is expected to begin in November, and production to begin in September 2012.