(Yicai Global) May 17 -- Dong Mingzhu, the indomitable chairwoman of the world's largest maker of air conditioners, has brushed off speculation she may retire, saying she still doesn't feel old. 

The 63-year-old head of Gree Electric Appliances Inc. said she feels as young as 25. She plans to focus her efforts on achieving the company's CNY200 billion (USD31.4 billion) annual revenue target, Dong said at an event yesterday. The Zhuhai-based firm is scheduled to elect a new board of directors on May 31.

Dong has been at Gree Electric for more than 28 years after starting out as one of its sales staff in 1990. Known in China as 'Sister Dong,' she is one of the country's most successful businesswomen, if not its most successful. A workaholic who has vowed to transform Gree into a global brand, she published her autobiography in 2006 under the title 'Regretless Pursuit.'

But she is no longer listed among Gree Electric's 10 largest shareholders, according to the firm's first-quarter report, which could affect her reelection. Zhuhai's local state-owned assets regulator removed her from the chairmanship of Gree Group, which holds an 18.4 percent stake in Gree Electric, in October 2016.

Still, at the same event yesterday, Guo Yonghang, the secretary of Zhuhai Municipal Party Committee, confirmed that the government would actively support real economy companies such as Gree Electric and extended his passionate support to Dong.

Editor: William Clegg