URUMQI - Guangzhou Automobile Group Co., Ltd. (GAC Group) Tuesday began production at its car plant in Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region in a bid to increase its market share in China's northwest.

With an annual production capacity of 50,000 units, the first phase of the assembly plant in Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang, will produce GAC's Trumpchi GS4.

Yu Jun, president of GAC Motor, the domestic passenger car subsidiary of GAC Group, said the plant covers an area of 330,000 square meters and the first phase involved an investment of 1.09 billion yuan ($174 million).

The second phase will add another 50,000 units to the annual capacity, Yu said.

GAC Motor is the country's first domestic passenger car brand to set up a production facility in Xinjiang, a core area of the Silk Road Economic Belt.

The plant is expected to increase the market share of GAC's Trumpchi cars in Xinjiang and its neighboring regions, said Yu.

GAC Motor's new plant in Hangzhou began production in December and another plant is under construction in Yichang.

With its first plant in Guangzhou, its headquarters, GAC Motor will have four assembly plants in operation by 2020.