Toyota Motor Corp. announced plans to open a research center in China that, among other things, aims to work on plug-in hybrids and all-electric battery car technology.
The Japanese auto maker said Wednesday it plans to invest $234 million to establish a technical center in the eastern city of Changshu, northwest of Shanghai. Toyota plans to open part of the center, to be called Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (China) Co., by early next year. It will start with some 200 employees, with the number of engineers and others eventually growing to 1,000, the company said.
The move comes as China's government is weighing the draft of 10-year plan that would set rules for how foreign auto makers transfer key technology to China if they opt to produce and market electric cars and plug-in hybrids in the nation, the world's largest auto market.
The plan, being prepared by China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, has worried international auto executives because it suggests the government could compel foreign auto makers that want to produce electric vehicles in China to share critical technologies by requiring them to enter joint ventures in which they have minority stakes.
Hitoshi Yokoyama, a Beijing-based Toyota spokesman, said, however, that the newly established research center isn't likely to be used to carry out any such transfer of key technology to China, because the center is wholly owned by Toyota and is intended to do "more basic" research.
"It isn't that the new tech center isn't going to be engaged in technology transfer at all; we plan to work with our Chinese partners and universities using this research center," he said.
But developing actual components and vehicles using advanced "new energy" technology would be responsibilities of product-development centers Toyota jointly runs with its local Chinese partners: Guangzhou Automobile Group Co. and FAW Group Corp., Mr. Yokoyama said. He noted that if Toyota and other foreign auto makers are mandated by the Chinese government to transfer electric-car technology, it would do so via the two jointly owned product development centers.
According to Toyota, the new Changshu center will focus on market research, quality confirmation and assurance, and China-specific gasoline engines, as well as new-energy vehicle technologies.
