What’s new: The electric car unit of Guangzhou Automobile Group Co. Ltd. (601238.SH/2238.HK) was valued at over $13.8 billion in a Series A funding round involving 53 strategic investors.
The financing – which totaled 18.3 billion yuan ($2.53 billion) – is considered the largest private equity investment ever in the electric vehicle industry and brings Aion one step closer. further toward an IPO, industry insiders said.
The round reduced state-owned Guangzhou Automobile Group’s stake in GAC Aion New Energy Automobile Co. Ltd. at 76.9% from 93.5%, according to an exchange filing Thursday.
The valuation of 103.2 billion yuan makes GAC Aion one of the most valued electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers in China.
Strategic investors include companies in the upstream and downstream electric vehicle industries, such as battery makers and chipmakers, he said.
The context: The latest funding round comes as traditional state-owned automakers ramp up their investments in new energy vehicles (NEVs) – including pure electric vehicles and hybrid vehicles – to challenge electric vehicle startups like XPeng Inc.
In the first three quarters, Aion sold 182,300 vehicles, making it China’s fifth-largest NEV maker by sales. Earlier this month, it completed construction of the second of its two factories in Guangzhou, bringing its total annual capacity to more than 400,000 vehicles.
Aion has entered into a strategic cooperation agreement with miner Ganfeng Lithium Co. Ltd. and plans to build your own battery factory to secure supplies.
Related: Guangzhou Auto’s EV unit completes ownership overhaul
Quick Takes are condensed versions of China-related stories for quick news that you can use.
Contact reporter Guo Yingzhe ([email protected]) and editor Joshua Dummer ([email protected]) and Flynn Murphy ([email protected])
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