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The board of turbochargers and powertrain technology group BorgWarner has approved a $120 million investment programme for new facilities in China, Mexico and Poland.

The decision will see the first investment in the North American market for dual clutch technology, which the group is already supplying to Volkswagen and Audi in Europe and to Shanghai Automotive in China.

Under the new spending plan, BorgWarner will put $35 million over four years into a Chinese technical centre to carry out research and development to meet the engine and drivetrain needs of Chinese carmakers. The centre will employ around 300 engineers by 2012.

In Mexico, BorgWarner is setting up what it terms a "Drivetrain Campus" that will make the first dual clutch transmissions for the North American market. The group expects to be making 680,000 dual clutch transmissions when the plant is working at full capacity. The 24,000 m2 facility will be at Saltilllo and will cost $67 million.

BorgWarner is also putting extra capacity into its turbocharger operations in Europe with a $18 million facility to make 500,000 turbochargers a year at Rzeszow in Poland. The group reckons that European turbocharged diesel engine demand will grow by 20 per cent up to 2011 and turbocharged gasoline engines will more than double.