Ford Smart Mobility and Zotye Auto have signed an MOU to establish a new 50/50 JV to "focus on providing smart, customised, all electric vehicle solutions to fleet operators and drivers in China's fast growing ride hailing market".
The automaker said many operators in China's ride hailing market were looking to expand their fleets with electric vehicles. It cited Boston Consulting Group saying the local 'e hailing' market is expected to grow by 19% annually to the end of 2022 with an overall fleet size potentially reaching up to 26m.
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The new JV will work closely with the Zotye Ford manufacturing JV which will build a range electric vehicles for consumers in China under a new indigenous brand, pending regulatory approval.
"As people and cities across the world increasingly adopt new mobility services, we also need to work together to ensure these services are solving key issues such as accessibility and air quality versus adding to them," said Ford mobility head Marcy Klevorn.
"By providing smart enabled electric vehicles for the ride hailing market, this new mobility joint venture will be a key part of the solution for China's cities."
The JV will provide ride hailing fleet operators and drivers with all electric vehicle leasing services, data driven fleet management products, in vehicle digital services, connectivity and vehicle customisation.
It will be located in Zhejiang province and focus inititallu on the ride hailing market there with plans to expand soon to other provinces. It will have registered capital of US$20m, with each company contributing half.
Ford said Zotye was one of the leading brands in China's all electric small vehicle segment and was one of the first automakers to produce all electric passenger vehicles in the country. The company sold around 36,000 vehicles in 2017.
The new JV will also talk with local governments and cities to support the development of integrated transportation solutions covering data connectivity and software systems to improve traffic flow, reduce congestion and enhance commuting.
"Last year, our two companies agreed to explore mobility services together to solve emerging transportation challenges for Chinese customers," said Peter Fleet, the president of Ford Asia Pacific.
"This takes us one step further to offering smart services, connected electric vehicles and data driven solutions to make China's urban centres cleaner and journeys more efficient and enjoyable."
