Aston Martin Lagonda said on Thursday Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd had committed to invest about 234 million pounds ($295.33 million) in the British luxury carmaker, making the Chinese automotive group its third-largest shareholder.

Currently, Aston Martin Chairman Lawrence Stroll's Yew Tree is the company's largest shareholder, followed by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF).

As part of the investment, Geely will acquire about 42 million ordinary shares from Yew Tree at 335 pence apiece and subscribe for another 28 million shares at the same price.

Aston Martin's stock closed at 231.2 pence on Wednesday.

That will give Geely a 17% stake in the company and entitle it to one board seat.

"Geely Holding, who initially became a shareholder last year, sees tremendous potential for Aston Martin's long-term growth and success," Stroll said in a statement.

"They offer us a deep understanding of the key strategic growth market that China represents, as well as the opportunity to access their range of technologies and components." ($1 = 0.7923 pounds) (Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza)