Shanghai Volkswagen Automotive Co. President Liu Jian was killed in a traffic accident over the weekend during a visit to the northwestern Chinese province of Gansu, a company public relations official confirmed on Monday.

Shanghai Volkswagen is a 50-50 joint venture between Chinese car maker SAIC Group and German auto giant Volkswagen AG (VOW.XE).

The public relations official, who declined to be named, said an article published Monday by the state-run Xinhua News Agency about the traffic accident was accurate.

The Xinhua report said Shanghai Volkswagen is operating as normal after the accident that killed four company officials, including Liu, and the accident won't affect client services. The officials were on a business trip to Gansu, the report said, adding the other three were high-ranking managers at the company. Xinhua didn't name the other officials.

The Shanghai Volkswagen official said Zeng Jialin, the director of the public relations department, was one of the officials who died in the accident. She couldn't immediately name the remaining two officials.

Shanghai Volkswagen may issue further statements depending on the situation, she said.

Liu was a veteran in China's auto industry, and was appointed as Shanghai Volkswagen's general manager in 2007.

When asked about a successor for Liu, SAIC Group official Zhu Xiangjun said no information was immediately available.

Last week, Volkswagen announced it will build a new production plant with a maximum annual production capacity of 300,000 vehicles in China's coastal Jiangsu province.

Liu attended the signing ceremony for the new project, according to a news release posted on Shanghai Volkswagen's website.