(Yicai Global) Sept. 15 -- Weichai Power Co. [SHE: 000338], an internal combustion engine manufacturer headquartered in Weifang in East China's Shandong province will establish a joint venture with Belarus auto group, Minsk Automobile Plant (MAZ). The new joint venture will be the 20th enterprise to station in China-Belarus Industrial Park in Minsk, capital of Belarus.

Chairmen of both companies signed a document in Minsk on Sept. 14 and agreed Weichai Power would hold 70 percent equity of the joint venture while MAZ will have 30 percent, state-run Xinhua News Agency reported. The new joint venture will invest USD50 million in diesel engine production, with USD20 million preliminary investment.

The floor area of the joint venture is about 33,000 square meters, and designed annual output of engines will reach 20,000 units with the highest-level Europe VI emission standards. The product marketing area will cover Russia, Belarus and Ukraine.

Weichai Power has cooperated with MAZ for 10 years. The plant planning and design of joint venture is expected to be finished by the end of this year, and the project will be completed and put into production in November 2018, said Tan Xuguang, chairman of Weichai Power.

The China-Belarus Industrial Park is located near the airport of Minsk, and is the largest overseas industrial park zone in the world, whose construction Chinese enterprises took part, and also a landmark project proposed by the Belt and Road Initiative. Currently, 20 enterprises from China, Belarus, the US, Austria and Lithuania are stationed there.