The Type 59 main battle tank is a Chinese licensed production version of the Soviet T-54A. The Soviet Union and Chinese governments agreed on the transfer of T-54A technology in 1956. At the same time, the first tank manufacturing facility (617 Factory) was built up in Baotou, Inner Mongolia under the help of Soviet engineers. In 1958, the first Chinese-made T-54A using Soviet components rolled out from the assembly line.