Japan's Mitsubishi Motor Vehicle Co. has agreed to take a quarter share in South East (Fujian) Motor Co., Ltd. (SEM), a major Chinese auto maker based in the eastern province of Fujian.

Under the agreement Mitsubishi Motor will take 20 percent of SEM shares this year and its shareholding will rise to 25 percent next year, according to SEM sources.

The sources were reluctant to disclose how much did Mitsubishi pay for the shares.

SEM is authorized to produce vehicles with the brand of Mitsubishi and it will learn from Mitsubishi's expertise through the cooperation, said SEM president Lin Yuzhang.

Mitsubishi was optimistic about the Chinese market and hoped to build SEM into its production and sales base of sedans, multi-purpose vehicles and light commercial vehicles, said president Osamu Masuko.

SEM is the largest auto joint venture with investment from across the Taiwan Straits, producing and selling 300,000 vehicles every year.

It was jointly founded in 1995 with a registered capital of 138 million U.S. dollars by Fujian Auto Industrial Co., Ltd and China Motor Corporation of Yulon Enterprise Group, the largest auto group in Taiwan.

Under the new agreement, Fujian Auto Industrial will keep its 50 percent shareholding while the Taiwan company will transfer some of its shares to Mitsubishi.

Mitsubishi holds 14 percent of the motor corporation of Yulon and has been providing technologies for SEM, according to Lin Yuzhang.

Source: Xinhua