October 25, 2010
News Release
The delegation of Hoosier business and community leaders traveling to China and Japan with Governor Mitch Daniels has been finalized. The delegation will be in the two countries from November 6 to 17.
This will be the sixth trade mission that Daniels has led as governor. The cost of the state delegation is being covered entirely through private donations to the Indiana Economic Development Foundation and utilizes no tax dollars.
Greg Wathen, president and CEO of the Economic Development Coalition for Southwest Indiana will accompany Governor Daniels as a member of the delegation to Japan where he worked with the Governor and the Indiana Economic Development Corporation to bring Toyoda Boshoku to SW Indiana.
Below is the governor’s daily itinerary for the trip:
Monday, November 8 (China)
Governor Mitch Daniels will speak at a morning conference for business leaders in Shanghai. In the afternoon, the governor will visit several business prospects and host a reception for alumni from Indiana colleges and universities as well as Chinese companies that are interested in locating in the state.
Tuesday, November 9 (China)
Governor Daniels will meet with representatives from Shanghai Top Motor which in April celebrated the grand-opening of a 60,000 square-foot logistics center in Columbus, Ind. for its U.S. subsidiary, Techtop Motor LHP. He will also meet with several life science and electric vehicle companies in Shanghai before hosting a dinner for investment banking groups including CITIC, a state-owned Chinese investment company.
Wednesday, November 10 (China)
The governor will conduct business meetings with suppliers from Cummins, Inc. which is headquartered in Columbus, Ind., before traveling by train to Hangzhou, in Zhejiang Province. There he will meet with Zhao Hongzhu, the Party Secretary of Zhejiang province, who is hosting a banquet to celebrate the 23rd anniversary of the sister-state agreement between Indiana and Zhejiang. Former Governor Robert Orr signed a sister-state agreement with Zhejiang Governor Shen Zulun in Indianapolis on July 23, 1987.
Thursday, November 11 (China)
Governor Daniels will speak at a conference for business leaders in Zhejiang and later will meet with representatives from Wanxiang Group and Geely Motors as a follow-up to the companies’ visits to Indiana earlier this year. In May, representatives from Wanxiang Group and Geely Motors traveled to Indianapolis for the first-ever China-U.S. Advanced Technology Vehicle Summit. During the visit, Wanxiang signed a letter of intent with lithium-ion battery maker, EnerDel to jointly produce battery systems for Wanxiang’s existing backlog of customers in China.
Wanxiang is China’s largest auto-parts supplier and second-largest private company, with over $10 billion in annual revenue and 30,000 employees. EnerDel, which is currently ramping production at its three Indiana facilities, said the deal could bring its total central Indiana employment to 3,000 over the next few years. In the evening, Daniels will host a dinner for leaders from the Bank of China and the Chinese Export-Import Bank.
Friday, November 12 (China)
The governor and members of the delegation will meet with several business prospects while traveling to Anji, China, home to Yuankai Furniture, which announced plans in June to locate its U.S. headquarters in Marion and hire up to 100 associates over the next four years.
Saturday, November 13 (China)
Saturday is a non-business day in China so the delegation will take part in cultural tours and host a dinner for local officials from Zhejiang Province.
Sunday, November 14 (China/Japan)
The Indiana delegation will travel from Hangzhou to Tokyo, Japan to continue its economic development mission.
Monday, November 15 (Japan)
Governor Daniels will meet with leaders of Indiana’s three Japanese automobile assembly plants: Honda President Takanobu Ito, Toyota Motor Corporation President Akio Toyoda and Subaru Corporate Executive Vice President J. Kondo. He will also meet with Tochigi Governor Tomikazu Fukuda and ITOCHU Chairman E. Kobayashi. Representatives from ITOCHU, one of the largest general trading firms in Japan, traveled to Indiana last November and joined Secretary of Commerce Mitch Roob to sign a memorandum of understanding signifying the joint exploration of economic growth opportunities.
Tuesday, November 16 (Japan)
The governor and IEDC officials will travel by train to Nagoya to conduct business meetings with prospective companies as well as companies that currently have operations in Indiana including Toyota Industries, Aisin Seiki and Toyoda Boshoku.
Wednesday, November 17 (Japan)
The governor and members of the Indiana delegation will return to Indianapolis from Tokyo.
