Great Wall Motor Co Ltd, a mainland-based automaker, said it will begin trial sales of its pure electric cars in the country next year, tapping growing demand for clean energy vehicles.

The company also expected sales in the second half of the year to rise from the first six months, Chairman Wei Juanjun told Reuters in an interview on the sidelines of the Global Automotive Forum in Chengdu Thursday.

"I believe the second half will be better than the first half for China's car market, and our sales will be better," Wei said.

The car maker had a full-year export sales target of 50,000 vehicles this year, and had already sold 30,000 in the first six months of 2010, it said earlier.

The company said it would keep its electric car for domestic sale, with no immediate plans to export these vehicles. "We will display our electric car at the Guangzhou auto show and will start trial sales next year," Wei said.

Car makers in the country are rushing to put out clean energy vehicles amid government subsidies to promote growth in the sector, fueling further the electric car craze in the country that has been initiated by BYD Co Ltd, whose share price jumped more than five-fold last year after billionaire Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired a 10 percent stake in the mainland-based auto and battery maker.

Late last month, Zhu Fushou, president of Dongfeng Motor Group Co, told media in Hong Kong that the Wuhan-based automaker plans to introduce hybrid and electric vehicles within two years and may invest 3 billion yuan in new-energy vehicle projects.

Dongfeng hopes hybrids and electric cars will account for 20 percent of its production within four to five years, Zhu said.

Great Wall was the biggest SUV maker in China with an about 12 percent market share in the first half of 2010 compared with 10.8 percent for Dongfeng Honda and 9 percent for FAW Toyota, analysts said.

The company sees huge growth potential in the sector as SUVs now make up about 9 percent of total passenger vehicle sales volume in China against 30 percent in developed countries.

In terms of sales, sport utility vehicles accounted for 45 percent, pickup trucks 27 percent, sedans 20 percent, and with others making up the remaining 8 percent in the first half of 2010.

Great Wall's first-half net profit more than tripled to 867 million yuan and exports accounted for about 14 percent of total revenue.

Its shares have risen 85 percent this year, outperforming rivals such as Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd, which is down nearly 30 percent.

Reuters

(HK Edition 09/17/2010 page3)