New President Appointed at Changan PSA Automobile Co., Ltd (CAPSA)

26-2-2013 — /europawire.eu/ — PSA Peugeot Citroën and Changan Automobile Group announced today the proposed appointment of Gilles Boussac as President of Changan PSA Automobile (CAPSA) at the next meeting of the joint venture’s Board of Directors on 27 March 2013. Mr Boussac would replace Eric Apode, who will take charge of PSA Peugeot Citroën’s global projects unit in the Research and Development Department.

Eric Apode, 47, is a graduate of the Ecole des Mines de Paris. During the past six years spent in China, he has held a variety of positions, such as Executive Vice President of Dongfeng Peugeot Citroën Automobile (DPCA) and Technical Director, Purchasing and Styling, PSA Peugeot Citroën Asia. He has served as President of CAPSA since November 2011. Under his leadership, the joint venture received approval from Chinese authorities. CAPSA has now laid a firm foundation, in particular by installing the production tooling at the Shenzhen plant and positioning the DS line as a premium brand in China. In 2013, CAPSA will initiate a new phase with the start-up of local production of the DS5 during the second half.

Gilles Boussac, 52, has degrees from Ecole Polytechnique and the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Techniques Avancées. He has held a variety of positions at PSA Peugeot Citroën, including managing director of a sales subsidiary in Dijon and manager of the body-in-white unit at the Rennes production centre. From 2005 to 2007, he was Executive Vice President, Technical Affairs with Dong Feng Peugeot Citroën Automobiles in China, then Senior Vice President, Product Strategy and Markets for the Peugeot brand. He has been Executive Vice President, Aftersales Services and Parts since 2009.

Combining the expertise of two market leaders, one Chinese and the other European, CAPSA is a joint venture between China Changan Automobile Group and PSA Peugeot Citroën. It is initially focusing its efforts on introducing the Citroën brand’s DS line in China, with the 2012 launches of the DS3, DS4 and DS5.

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Eric Apode

Gilles Boussac