North China Benz Heavy-Duty Truck is to set up a second assembly plant in Shandong, far from its home base in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

Together with Penglai Gold Corporation it will establish a plant that will operate under the name North China Benz Heavy-Duty Truck (Penglai) General Assembly Company, located in the Penglai Economic Development Zone in Yantai City, Shandong.The first phase construction is estimated to cost 700 million yuan (USD84.5 million).

The facility is expected to come on stream some time in 2005 with an annual output capacity of 10,000 heavy-duty trucks.

Capacity may rise as high as 30,000 units by 2010.