German engineering group Bosch on Thursday unveiled plans to invest around $1.0 billion in a research and development centre in China for electromobility and automated driving.

The company said in a statement that the first phase of the multi-year project in the eastern city of Suzhou would be completed by mid-2024 and have a 300,000-square-metre (3.2-million-square-foot) site upon completion.

A company spokeswoman told AFP the centre would be finished in 10 years.

Bosch said the centre would "develop and manufacture electromobility components, mainly for Chinese automakers".

CEO Stefan Hartung called the investment "an important step for the mobility of the future in the world's biggest auto market".

Bosch, which has been active in China for more than a century, already has four factories in Suzhou employing nearly 10,000 people.

The announcement comes amid growing fears in Germany about an over-reliance on Beijing economically, and critical infrastructure and know-how falling into the hands of Chinese state-linked companies.

In particular, the microchip industry has come under scrutiny, as it produces key components used across industry from consumer electronics to battery-powered vehicles.

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