Mitsubishi Motors Corp. said Tuesday it has signed a memorandum of understanding with its Taiwanese affiliate, China Motor Corp., to expand production and sales in mainland China.
Under the deal with Taipei-based China Motor, MMC said it plans to join the management of South East (Fujian) Motor Co., the affiliate's joint venture with a Chinese automaker in the southern Chinese province of Fujian.
The venture is owned equally by China Motor and Fujian Motor Industrial Corp. MMC owns 13.97 percent of China Motor.
The memorandum "opens the way for MMC to further boost its operations in mainland China in the event MMC joins the management" of the Fujian venture, MMC said in a statement.
MMC and other parties will hold talks on the specifics of the planned management participation, including the scale of an equity stake it plans to get in the venture, MMC said.
MMC plans to use the Fujian venture as "a key facility for the production and sales" of a range of MMC vehicles for the mainland Chinese market, according to MMC.