Spain-based company, Gestamp, open a $56m factory in Tianjin

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An employee polishes a newly pressed steel vehicle bonnet at the auto parts manufacturing plant operated by Gestamp Automocion SA in Duenas, Spain.

Gestamp Automocion SA, a Spain-based multinational in vehicle components, has strengthened its presence in China by opening a new 50 million euros ($56.58 million) production facility in Tianjin.

At the opening ceremony on Thursday, Gestamp Executive Chairman Francisco J. Riberas said that China is "the most important priority" of the firm's globalization strategy, adding: "We are fully committed to bringing the latest technologies to the Chinese automotive market in order to make lighter and safer cars."

The new plant, Gestamp Auto Components (Tianjin) Co Ltd, brings Gestamp's China count up to 11 production facilities and 2 research and development centers.

"This state-of-the-art plant ... seeks to further enhance product quality, including the latest innovations in hot stamping, and complements local suppliers with a hightech product offering," he said, adding that Gestamp will particularly work with "Chinese brands that are strongly focused on electrical vehicle".

The facility is a joint venture with Beijing Hainachuan Automotive Parts Co Ltd. Cai Suping, chairman of BHAP, said the collaboration marks a significant step toward lighter car components and contributes to the national strategy of integrating development within the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.

The launch of the production base comes amid a fall in China's auto sales. In October, sales of passenger vehicles like sedans and minivans declined 13 percent year-on-year to over 2 million units, the China Association of Auto Manufacturers reported. Over the wider January-October period, sales fell 1 percent from a year earlier to 19.3 million vehicles, the association said.

Other regions are also seeing falls. In the EU, new car registrations were down 7.3 percent in October compared to a year earlier, the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association said on Thursday.

However, Kevin Stobbs, president of Gestamp Asia, said the fall can be cyclical, adding: "We have got some concerns, but we believe it'll be short-term."

Stobbs said China's pledge to further open up will not only inject momentum into the country's development, but also be conducive to foreign companies. He cited the government's ongoing efforts to relax foreign ownership limits on carmakers.

Stobbs said he had confidence in the country's future growth momentum.

China has been very well to move from a traditional low-cost manufacturing into more of a technology and service provider, and it is growing into a "more matured" market, he stressed.

"Key issues for us moving forward (in China) are environmental policies," he said, adding that Gestamp's plants have been fitted with green facilities to handle the issue.

In 2017, sales of Gestamp group in China totaled 736 million euros, with a workforce of over 5,100 employees. Between 2013 and 2017, Gestamp invested more than 360 million euros into the country.

海斯坦普-海纳川合资公司成立暨天津工厂开业

2018年11月15日, 海斯坦普与海纳川公司在天津武清举行合资公司成立暨天津工厂开业仪式。合资企业将在天津、北京两地设立制造企业，为京津冀地区的各大OEM提供“轻量化”汽车零部件产品。

西班牙驻华大使Rafael Dezcallar，武清开发区工委书记、管委会主任张绍峰，海斯坦普集团执行董事长Francisco J. Riberas、海斯坦普亚太区总裁Kevin Stobbs、北汽集团党委常委、副总经理，海纳川公司党委书记、董事长蔡速平，梅赛德斯-奔驰汽车采购与供应商质量管理中国执行副总裁Marcus Grund，北京奔驰采购与供应商管理执行副总裁穆稳，海纳川公司总经理陈宝，等领导出席了仪式。

该合资企业的正式运营, 更好地为北京奔驰、北京现代、北汽自主品牌提供配套服务，持续大力拓展京津冀地区的各大OEM市场。

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