Chinese heavy-duty truck maker FAW Jiefang Automotive Company announced plans to invest CNY30bn (US$4.6bn) by 2025 to develop new energy vehicles (NEVs).
The company, owned by China’s second largest vehicle manufacturer, state-owned FAW Group, said it planned to develop battery powered, hybrid and fuel cell electric trucks over the next five years.
It said its aims to become an industry leader in the electrified truck segment by 2030, with the share of NEVs to rise gradually as a proportion of its overall sales.
The Jilin-based company’s chairman Hu Hanjie said FAW Jiefang would contribute to China’s plan to reach peak carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 and of achieving carbon neutrality by 2060.
FAW Jiefang is one of China’s largest commercial vehicle manufacturers, with sales rising by 11% to 360,000 units in the first seven months of 2021. Heavy duty truck sales accounted for just under 300,000 units, according to local reports, up almost 13% year on year.
The company said it plans to build new energy “innovation” bases in nine domestic and overseas locations and also a centre dedicated exclusively to developing fuel cell systems for commercial vehicles.