Evergrande’s EV unit to begin presale of Hengchi 5 in Q2

Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Evergrande Auto, the electric vehicle (EV) unit of Chinese property giant Evergrande Group, recently established a sales subsidiary in Beijing with a registered capital of 100 million yuan ($15.5 million).

According to the business data inquiry platform Qixinbao, the new company, dubbed Hengchi Guorui New Energy Vehicle Sales (Beijing) Co., Ltd., was incorporated on April 20 as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hengchi New Energy Vehicle Sales Co., Ltd (“Hengchi NEV Sales Co., Ltd.”). It features a business scope that covers the sales of new energy vehicles (NEVs), the distribution and appraisal of used cars, the operation of EV charging infrastructures, information system integration service, and ride-hailing service.

Qixinbao's data show that the parent, Hengchi NEV Sales Co., Ltd. is wholly controlled by Evergrande New Energy Automobile Investment Holdings Group Co., Ltd. On March 24, it set up a similar wholly-owned subsidiary in Shanghai, which features the same registered capital and business scope as that of the newborn Beijing-based one.

Hengchi 5; photo credit: Evergrande Auto

Evergrande Auto has been permitted to sell its first production model, the Hengchi 5, as the BEV model was included in the Announcement on On-road Vehicle Manufacturers and Products issued by China's MIIT in March.

The Hengchi 5 is being produced at Evergrande Auto’s manufacturing plant in Tianjin. The automaker plans to begin the presale of the model in the second quarter of 2022 and then start scale delivery in the third quarter.

Evergrande Auto posted job listings earlier this year, which revealed the company intended to hire salespersons in 15 cities, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Tianjin, Shenzhen, Zhengzhou, Hangzhou, and Nanjing.

In March, the EV unit of Evergrande Group unveiled a plan to build 36 flagship showrooms, 1,600 dealerships, and 3,000 maintenance service centers across China, but didn't give the a timeline for either target.

The first flagship showroom is set to be launched before the Hengchi 5 becomes available for presale, according to a local media outlet, citing a person with knowledge of the matter.