DETROIT (AP) -- Automotive safety system maker Autoliv Inc. said Friday it has begun construction of a factory to make seat belts in Nanjing, China, replacing an existing plant in the city.
The first phase of the new plant will be around 710,000 square feet (66,000 square meters), about 50 percent larger than the current plant, the company said in a statement. It's expected to cost around $10 million.
The existing plant makes seat belts for major vehicle companies in China including Shanghai Volkswagen, Shanghai General Motors, Dongfeng Peugeot Citroen, Chery, Geely and SAIC, Autoliv said.
Autoliv now has 800 employees in Nanjing, and it will add 200 when the new plant is completed. The statement didn't say when the plant would be finished.
The Stockholm-based company announced in December that it would expand manufacturing in China for electronics by 50 percent, and it said last week it will raise factory capacity in Northern China by 25 percent.
The company has 10 facilities in China that employ 5,500 people.