China Potevio Co, a domestic information technology equipment manufacturer and service provider, yesterday formed a strategic alliance with the Shanghai government to jointly develop new energy industries.

According to the agreement signed yesterday, China Potevio will set up a new energy base in its Shanghai unit to focus on the production of batteries and the development of lithium iron phosphate materials to boost the rollout of new energy vehicles.

The signing agreement was witnessed by Ai Baojun, deputy mayor of Shanghai, and Xing Wei, the firm's president.

State-owned China Potevio, whose main business covers manufacturing and trading of telecom products, has been striving to be a leading manufacturer and service provider for new energy applications. The Beijing-based giant has set up a new energy division and is giving top priority to core industrial segments such as batteries.

It plans to invest 5 billion yuan (US$733 million) to 8 billion yuan on new energy industries over the next three years to five years and targets more than 10 billion yuan in revenue during the period.

Meanwhile, China Potevio said it would also cooperate with local firms and provide battery leasing and management systems for battery charging stations as part of its participation in the 2010 Shanghai World Expo.

By cooperating with industrial companies like China Potevio, Shanghai will also be able to accelerate its development of new energy vehicles, which include gasoline-battery powered hybrids and other green vehicles.

(Shanghai Daily May 26, 2009)