China launches plug-in car

BEIJING:Chinese battery firm turned carmaker BYD leapfrogged its international rivals with the launch of China's first homegrown plug-in hybrid vehicle for the retail market.

The vehicle can run up to 100 kilometres (62 miles) on its electric engine, and when it runs low on power, shifts to a back-up petrol engine. Its battery can fully charge in nine hours from a standard electrical outlet, or within an hour at BYD's own charging stations, the company said at the launch of the F3DM at a ceremony in the southern city of Shenzhen.

China has been trying all kinds of new technologies, including putting new energy buses and other vehicles on the roads, to resolve its chronic pollution problem and reduce its growing dependence on crude oil.

The car's retail price is around 150,000 yuan (€16,000), which is not much more than many domestically produced mid-range sedans.

BYD is a private company based in Shenzhen. It started life as a battery maker, but in 2003, it bought Tsinchuan Automobile Company Limited to enter the car market. US investor Warren E Buffett has a 9.89 per cent stake in the Hong Kong-listed company.

BYD claims to be the first company to commercialise plug-in hybrid technology, which allows the batteries of the F3DM - DM stands for dual mode - to be recharged without any special infrastructure.

GM's plug-in electric car, the Chevrolet Volt, is due to roll out in late 2010. Toyota also is pushing to get a plug-in electric vehicle to market in 2010, while Ford says it is five years away from producing them in significant numbers. Meanwhile Mercedes and Evonik have done deals that may see electric Mercedes on the market by 2010.