President of General Motors Dan Akerson and head of SAIC (Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation Group) Hu Maoyuan signed an agreement on joint development of electric vehicles in China. The research and development works will be managed by Pan Asia Technical Automotive Center, owned by two companies.
Vice-president of General Motors Girski Steve said that electric vehicles are designed for the Chinese market, where they will be sold under the brand name of SAIC, and under the brand Shanghai GM.
China will soon become the largest market for sales of hybrid and electric cars. According to calculations of the government, in 2015 China will have one million hybrid and 500,000 electric cars. By 2020, the total number of environmentally friendly cars is expected to reach 5 million. According to some experts, the number of “green” cars in China will be even higher.