Tianjin Qingyuan Electric Vehicle Co, the first Chinese automaker to break into the United States, hopes to significantly boost sales of its self-developed electric models in the world’s second-largest market this year, a source with direct knowledge of the matter was quoted as saying on Wednesday.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
The firm makes small ‘low-speed’ vehicles supplied mainly to fleets. US laws restrict them to 25mph (40km/h) in urban zones where the posted speed limit is up to 35mph (60km/h).
State-backed Qingyuan is among a growing army of Chinese automakers, including BYD, partly-owned by US billionaire Warren Buffett, eager to tap the fledgling green car sector in mature markets.
Qingyuan hopes to sell 3,000 self-made electric vehicles mostly in the United States in 2010, 50% more than what it shipped there in the past five years, the source told Reuters.
It is also seeking opportunities to sell electric vehicles in Europe where regulators have been tightening up emission rules to tackle environmental issues, the source said.
“Qingyuan is rather positive on the outlook of its export business as market potential for green cars in the US and Europe is huge,” said the source.
Qingyuan declined to comment.
BYD plans to export its first electric car, the e6, to the United States this year.
Qingyuan, based in the municipality of Tianjin near Beijing, is capable of producing 5,000 to 6,000 electric vehicles a year and it has a near-term goal to raise production of key components of electric cars, including motors and driving systems.
To fund expansion, Qingyuan is in talks with several potential foreign and domestic investors, said Reuters’ source, without elaborating.
