Daimler and its Chinese joint venture partner BAIC Motor Corporation agreed to upgrade the Mercedes-Benz factory in Beijing to make electric cars, Daimler announced on Thursday.
In the presence of German Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, Daimler AG and its Chinese partner BAIC Group signed a framework agreement on further strengthening their strategic collaboration through investments for New Energy Vehicles in China.
“China today is already the world’s largest market for NEVs, and Daimler is committed to contributing to the further development of electric mobility in this country,” said Hubertus Troska, Daimler’s board member in charge of China.
Daimler also agreed to acquire a minority stake in Beijing Electric Vehicle Co., Ltd. (BJEV), a subsidiary of the BAIC Group, to enhance collaboration on developing so-called New Energy Vehicles, a label for low-emission vehicles which include plug-in hybrid and battery electric cars.
BJEV was established in 2009 by the BAIC Group and other shareholders as a development platform for New Energy Vehicles. As one of China’s leading pure electric vehicle manufacturers, BJEV’s primary business scope covers research and development, production, and sales and services for New Energy Vehicles and core NEV components.
To date, the company’s product portfolio covers five major series of electric vehicles, the EC, EH, EU, EV and EX series, which are comprised of over ten electric vehicle passenger car models.
