German luxury car maker BMW has sought permission from the Chinese government to increase its annual production by 80%, from the current 200,000 to 360,000 units.
The carmaker's 50-50 Chinese joint venture, BMW Brilliance Automotive operates two facilities: the Tiexi plant and the Dadong plant in the northeast China city of Shenyang, which will produce the 5 series, 3 series and X1 models.
According to the Chinese Ministry of Environmental Protection, the carmaker is aiming to increase the Tiexi plant's capacity from the current 100,000 units to 200,000 units, which will be allowed following the assessment of the plant's likely impact on Shenyang's environment.
Earlier 2012, BMW Brilliance has asked the government to boost the Dadong plant's capacity to 160,000 units from the current 100,000 units.
During the initial four months of 2012, BMW has sold 107,211 domestic built and imported vehicles in China marking a 35% rise year-on-year, further making China the carmaker's largest market worldwide.
The carmaker's Chinese expansion is important to achieve their goal of selling 2 million cars and SUVs by 2016.
According to AutoNews, BMW had reported 1.67 million vehicle sales worldwide last year.