KARACHI, Aug 27: China’s Dong Feng Motor Company has started production of commercial vehicles here at Sindh Engineering Limited (Pvt) Ltd’s plant under a franchise and technical collaboration agreement.

Under the first phase, Dong Feng will be manufacturing 1.5-ton and 4-ton trucks and buses. The company will start producing 15-ton and above capacity buses and trucks in January 2004, Pakistan Automobile Corporation chairman Raza I. Jafri informed Industries and Production Minister Liaquat Ali Jatoi here on Tuesday evening at a ceremony to celebrate the start of DFM production at SEL plant.

DFM will form a joint venture company with SEL when the latter would achieve sales figures of 1,000 vehicles in one year.

DFM senior vice-president Tong Dongcheng said his company was among top three automobile companies in China and No 4 in the world with total production of 450,000 vehicles in 2002.—APP