Ambitious plans for parts supplier Delphi

A visitor walks past Delphi booth at the 15th Shanghai International Automobile Industry Exhibition on April 25, 2013. [Photo/dfic.cn]

Delphi Corp plans to grow its business fourfold in China by 2020 from its 2012 revenues of $2.28 billion, the US-based automotive parts supplier announced in Beijing.

China now contributes 16 percent of the company's global business turnover, a ratio it wants to increase to 25 percent, said Majdi Abulaban, president for the Asia-Pacific region at Delphi.

"To keep growth higher than the market's average is the long-term goal of Delphi in China, rather than just expand our business here," he added.

Luxury cars make Asia premiere at Auto China

Ferrari riding high in Year of the Horse

Delphi's China sales revenue surpassed $2.6 billion in 2013, a rise of 18.14 percent over the previous year.

Abulaban predicted that China's auto market will account for 35 percent of the worldwide total in 2020.

"We expect our income from China also can keep pace with the market tendency," he said.

The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers forecasts that China's vehicle sales will reach 23 million units in 2014, growing 8 to 10 percent from the previous year.

Delphi's target in 2014 is still higher than the industry growth. Most times of the past year, its Chinese business actually increased by twice the overall market.

The top 10 vehicle manufacturers in China are all Delphi's clients as are most domestic brands, Abulaban said.

But he said Delphi needs to invest more into the market to achieve its goals.

Delphi will add three new facilities in China including a $100 million production site in Yantai, Shandong province and a plant for electrical systems in Shenyang, Liaoning province.

Another new plant in Beijing will support Delphi's local client BAIC Group, said Abulaban.

"We need to expand our production capacity to meet the rising demand," he said.