The China Daily is reporting Hewlett-Packard has contracted Foxconn Electronics to open and operate a printer factory in the city of Chongqing, located in southwest China.

HP CEO Meg Whitman is reported as saying that the recent merger between HP’s PC and printer it the reason the company wants to expand in China.

CEO Whitman told the China Daily HP will place a greater emphasis on gaining back a larger percentage of the Chinese market by investing more in PC manufacturing and peripherals.

“We are a hardware company,” said CEO Whitman to the Daily.

“Seventy percent of our sales revenue comes from hardware, and we are proud of it.”

The value of HP products manufactured by the facility could range from $1.2 billion to $2.5 billion.

Reports indicate the manufacturing facility will be completed by the end of the year.

“I don’t anticipate downsizing in China but want to hire more talent because it is an enormous market,” she said.