New-energy cars to make up half of Yidao fleet

Car sharing app Yidao Yongche has announced that new-energy vehicles will account for half of all its cars in service within three years and has vowed to seek partners with whom to build charging posts.

The company inaugurated its "E-Car" project on May 7 and has teamed up with a number of new energy companies to form a lineup that includes Tesla, Toyota Prius, Volvo S60L, BAIC EV series and Lexus hybrid cars, said Zhou Hang, CEO of Yidao.

Zhou did not reveal the exact number of vehicles the company plans to have on the road by that time, amid industry debate over an inadequate number of charging posts throughout the country.

He said the company has joined with the new energy arm of State-owned Potevio, one of the country's earliest adopters in infrastructure construction for new-energy vehicles, to build 1,000 charging posts soon in major cities including Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou soon.

"Seeking more partners in building charging posts is another priority for us," Zhou said.

Amid fierce competition as well as the government's uncertain attitude towards the sector, some other car-sharing firms have announced they will never charge drivers and passengers to make a profit.

Those statements have triggered debate as to how the sector can make a profit, analysts say.

Yidao's foray into the market has taken a unique road.

Early this year, the company announced it would build its own cars and it then began to test the waters in car rental sectors.

Yidao's key rivals, car-hailing apps Didi and Kuaidi merged two months ago, and vowed to push into the areas of car sharing, school bus provision and providing substitute drivers for car owners who have been drinking.