Global PC maker Lenovo said here on Thursday that it would invest 310 million U.S. dollars to set up two new manufacturing plants in India and Mexico, in order to meet the growing demand in those regions.

Lenovo said the new plant in India will be opened in Baddi, a city in India's northern state of Himachal Pradesh, and expected to be operational in the third fiscal quarter of 2007, with an approximate annual production capacity of 2 million PCs.

Meanwhile, the new plant in Mexico will be set up in Monterrey, a city in the north of Mexico, and is anticipated to carry out production by mid-2008, with a planned annual manufacturing capacity of 5 million PCs.

Baddi manufacturing facility is Lenovo's second plant in India. "India is an integral part of Lenovo's global manufacturing strategy. With our second plant in India, we expect to improve our supply chain efficiently and better serve our growing base of customers in this region," said Jeff Gallinat, vice president of Lenovo's global manufacturing.

In December 2006, Lenovo opened an innovation center in Mumbai, India's financial center, to accelerate innovation and create solutions for challenges faced in the markets.

In addition, more recently, Lenovo also announced its worldwide marketing hub in Bangalore, India's IT center.

According to Lenovo, the Monterrey plant will supply PCs to customers throughout the Americas and represents Lenovo's largest manufacturing investment to date outside of China.