Audi and SAIC to Partner in Electric Vehicle Development

Audi is to partner with SAIC, China's largest automaker, in the development of electric vehicles.

The move was confirmed in a statement released by SAIC to Bloomberg on Thursday.

"All parties agree that the Chinese automotive market is in the midst of the biggest transformation in its history. Therefore, we will work jointly on a strategic approach that will ensure its future success," SAIC said.

Further details on the partnership have not been disclosed, but Reuters, citing anonymous sources, reported last week that Audi is seeking to use SAIC's platform, specifically SAIC's premium EV brand known as IM, to accelerate the development of its own EVs for the Chinese market. The report said that the company is trying to use the platform.

China is Audi's largest market, but Audi is losing market share and its current EV lineup is not finding traction. Audi sells two EVs in China, the Q4 E-Tron and Q5 E-Tron, both based on parent company Volkswagen Group's MEB platform.

Audi sold just over 3,000 EVs in China in the first quarter, in contrast to the more than 21,000 sold by BMW and 137,000 by Tesla in the same period.

Audi has new EVs like the Q6 E-Tron, but the vehicle faces delays due to software issues.

Audi named a new CEO in June.

SAIC already has joint ventures in China with VW Group and General Motors; its joint venture with VW Group dates back to 1985 and produces some Audis.