(JW Insights) Jul 20 -- Chinese carmaker Geely Holding Group will invest $10 billion in Malaysia to develop the town of Tanjung Malim into a hub of car production, reported China Daily on July 19, citing Malaysia news agency Bernama.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim told Bernama on July 18 that Geely conveyed the plan to him in a letter, saying that it aspires to grow Tanjung Malim into the region's largest vehicle manufacturing center.

Malaysian carmaker Proton, in which Geely holds a 49.9 percent stake, has a manufacturing plant in the town. Geely and Proton have invested millions of dollars to expand and upgrade the plant.

Bernma said Proton plans to be headquartered in the town and the planned investment from Geely will create thousands of job opportunities.

A Geely representative said in a statement on July 18 that the company is fully committed to working with its Malaysian partners to sustainably develop the area and will disclose investment numbers in due course, according to Reuters.

Geely, owner of Volvo Cars and also a stakeholder of German auto group Mercedes, has been injecting cash and new technology to help Proton's turnaround since it acquired the company's stake in 2017, according to the China Daily report.

(Gao J/Yuan XY)