Chinese carmaker Zhejiang Geely has partnered with the US based electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer Detroit Electric to jointly develop pure EVs and electric drive systems for Chinese market.
Under the collaboration, the companies will manufacture EV based on the Geely's Emgrand EC7 model and will sell it under Emgrand brand, while the vehicle will carry a Detroit Electric badge.
Emgrand president Feng said, "The EC7-EV will enable us to provide a wider vehicle choice to our customers and it also reiterates our commitment to providing alternate energy vehicles to the market in China."
Sales of the vehicles are scheduled to start from 2014 with sales of around 3,000 units in the first year, which is expected to reach 30,000 units in the following three years.
According to the companies, the partnership also extends to the formulation of a joint venture company to manufacture the critical EV powertrain components and associated parts which will be located close to Geely's headquarters in Hangzhou.
The new EC7-EV model will provide both medium-range, which can cover 165km per charge, and long-range that can travel about 258km distance per charge, options, while offering 0-100kph acceleration in about 8S and a top speed of over 200kph.
For the development of the EV powertrain solution, including electric motor, vehicle management system, advanced thermo-managed battery pack, battery management system and a twin-speed high-torque gearbox, a joint development and engineering team has been formed by the companies.