NEW DELHI (Reuters) – China’s Great Wall Motor has shelved plans to invest $1 billion in India and fired all employees of its local unit after failing to obtain regulatory approvals, three sources with direct knowledge of the matter said on Friday.

The Chinese automaker has been planning to enter the Indian market since 2020 and the failure to secure approvals makes it one of the biggest casualties of New Delhi’s increased scrutiny of investments from Beijing.

Without directly commenting on the exit, Great Wall said in a statement it “would like to thank all the members of Indian team for their contribution”, adding it would continue to study the Indian market and look for opportunities “in the future.”

(Reporting by Aditi Shah; Editing by Mark Potter)