China's Third-richest

Yang led Brilliance China as it became the first mainland enterprise to go public overseas - it was listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1992. He was named China's third-richest man in 2001 by Forbes magazine.

But Yang fled to the United States in 2002 after he was charged with alleged economic crimes by the Liaoning provincial government.

Last year Yang announced plans to again build cars, this time in both the US and China.

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Hybrid Kinetic Motors (HK Motors), the auto arm of the Hybrid Kinetic Group Ltd, has selected Alabama as its first production site to make hybrid vehicles.

Yang's blueprint includes 60 billion yuan for three vehicle and engine production centers in China, according to previous media reports.

His company has been seeking local partners in several places. JAC became its first domestic partner, a necessity to secure a license to build cars in China.

JAC is a good partner with strong capability and experience in auto manufacturing, said independent analyst Zhong Shi.

The company sold about 274,000 vehicles - mostly trucks and bus components - in the first seven months this year, a surge of 60 percent from a year earlier. It moved 310,000 vehicles in all of 2009.