BEIJING, June 20, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Lentuo International Inc. (NYSE: LAS) ("Lentuo" or the "Company"), a leading non-state-owned automobile retailer headquartered in Beijing, today announced that it has signed a letter of intent ("LOI") with the Hailin Economic and Technological Development Zone in Hailin City, Heilongjiang Province, China to jointly develop the Hailin-Lentuo Auto Mall.
Located in Heilongjiang Province, the Hailin Economic and Technological Development Zone was designated as a national level development zone by the State Council in 2010. It is one of the only three national level Economic and Technological Development Zones in Heilongjiang Province. Under the terms of the LOI, Hailin City has agreed to provide approximately 266,000 square meters for the auto mall. With the strong support of Hailin City's government and the benefit of its long experience in the car dealership business, the Company is in the process of selecting strategic investors for the project.
The Hailin-Lentuo Auto Mall will include numerous full-service 4S dealerships from some of the world's leading brands with a large inventory of new and pre-owned cars, state-of-the-art showrooms, repair and maintenance service centers, vehicle insurance vendors, leasing services, auto parts, carwash, etc.
"This is another important step in our growth strategy as it will significantly expand our presence outside Beijing and will give us a leading role in one of the region's newest auto malls. I am thankful to the Hailin government for its trust in our ability to lead this project to success both for the city of Hailin and for Lentuo and its shareholders," commented Mr. Hetong Guo, Founder and Chairman of Lentuo. "Hailin City, with its growing middle class and lack of a dominant dealership, is an ideal example of a strategic city for our expansion program. The auto mall will further expand our geographic reach in China and support our brand with marketing campaigns focused on Northeast China.
"The concentration of a number of dealerships and ancillary operations, and the centralization of our internal resources in one specially designed and technologically up-to-date environment will allow us to capitalize on economies of scale and effective cost management," concluded Mr. Guo.
About Lentuo International Inc.
Lentuo is a leading non-state-owned automobile retailer headquartered in Beijing. Lentuo operates 11 franchise dealerships, ten automobile showrooms, one automobile repair shop, and one car leasing company.
Safe Harbor Statement
This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements constitute "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates," "target," "going forward," "outlook" and similar statements. Such statements are based upon management's current expectations and current market and operating conditions, and relate to events that involve known or unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the Company's control, which may cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Further information regarding these and other risks, uncertainties or factors is included in the Company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under applicable law.
For more information, please contact:
Ms. Jiangyu Luo
Acting CFO
Lentuo International Inc.
Email: luojiangyu@lentuo.net
Christensen
Mr. Christian Arnell
Telephone +86 10 5826 4939 in Beijing
Email: carnell@christensenir.com
Ms. Linda Bergkamp
Phone: +1-480-614-3004 (U.S.A.)
Email: lbergkamp@christensenir.com
