Audi, FAW sign deal on new EV joint venture in China

BEIJING -- Audi signed a memorandum of understanding with China's state-owned FAW Group to launch a new joint venture to make electric vehicles, the automaker said Tuesday in a statement.

Audi has a long partnership with FAW Group in China, the world's biggest car market.

Audi said it would produce models based on the Premium Platform Electric (PPE), an achitecture co-developed with Porsche.

It said the new venture would start manufacturing several models in China starting in 2024.

Audi's and Porsche's representatives in China said there was no plan for Porsche production at the new venture.

Audi has said its first EV, the e-tron crossover, which is currently imported, would be built at the Changchun plant operated by the FAW-Volkswagen joint venture.

The automaker also plans to make vehicles with Shanghai-based automaker SAIC Motor.

Audi plans to roll out more than nine electrified models in China by 2021 as part of parent Volkswagen Group's plan to accelerate the introduction of electrified vehicles in the country.

The automaker aims to have electrified vehicles make up a third of Chinese sales by 2025. It sold 512,081 vehicles in China in the first nine months of 2020 and about 690,000 vehicles last year.

Domestic EV makers such as China's Nio and Xpeng, as well as companies such as Tesla are expanding manufacturing capacity in China, where the government promotes greener vehicles to reduce air pollution.

Automotive News Europe contributed to this report