Kandi Technologies

In February 2013, Kandi and Shanghai Maple (a 99% subsidiary of Geely Auto) announced the establishment of a 50:50 electric vehicle joint venture, Zhejiang Kandi Electric Vehicles Investment, with an initial registered capital of 1 billion yuan (US$160 million).[2] The joint venture is planned to focus on the research and development, production, marketing and sale of electric vehicles in the Chinese mainland.[2] The joint venture agreement was signed on 22 March 2013.[3] Mr. Shufu Li, Chairman of Geely Auto will be appointed to be the first Chairman of the JV Company and Mr. Xiaoming Hu, Chairman & CEO of Kandi will be appointed to be first General Manager.[4]

In 2016, Geely Auto sold its half of the JV to Geely Holding Group, controlled by Li Shufu.[5][6]

Kandi has partnered up with Geely to sell EVs under the Gleagle brand.[7] Kandi remains one of Geely Auto's strategic partners in China focused on pure electric vehicle manufacturing. Under the strategic partnership the EX3 is born, Geely provides the EV designs and Kandi provides the EV manufacturing resources.

In July 2012 Kandi Technologies signed a strategic cooperation agreement with the city of Hangzhou to supply 20,000 electric vehicles for the city's pilot electric vehicle leasing program.[8]

The Kandi public EV CarShare concept is based on Hangzhou's bikeshare, the largest bikeshare in the world and the first of its kind in China. The bikeshare has since spread from Hangzhou to 19 Chinese cities including Shanghai and Beijing. To date, Kandi has delivered over 40,000 carshare EVs making it by far, the Words largest Carshare program.

Kandi's original plan was to build with both Government and “outside” support, 750 of these garages through a 50-50 joint venture with Geely Automotive, China's largest passenger automaker, which would require some 100,000 Kandi electric vehicles to stock them. This model is slated to spread to other cities and regions like Shanghai, Shandong, and Hainan. Six garages were completed, but due to escalating real estate prices, vertical garages have halted in favor of horizontal street parking type kiosks.

Kandi has acquired battery technology company Jinhua An Kao. Jinhua An Kao has designed a unique system of pure electric car battery replacement technologies including an intelligent constant-temperature charging station, a 50-100 channel intelligent battery charging system, a car battery replacement tool, and a car washing machine. Jinhua An Kao currently has 22 patents that have either been accepted by the PRC State Intellectual Property Offices for application or are currently in the application process. It has more than 10 utility model and design patents. Additionally, Jinhua An Kao owns three invention patents and 14 utility model patents relating to plug-in and soft-connection PACK technology.[9]

In 2018, Kandi transitioned into longer-range electric vehicles with the K23 and EX3 models.[10] One of the things that the company is claiming is that these SUV crossover hybrids have more cargo room from its other offerings.

Kandi acquired Sportsman Country LLC for $10 million in June 2018.[11] Sportsman Country will facilitate the dealer relationships for Kandi's EX3 electric vehicles.

Jiangsu Development and Reform Commission approved Kandi with 1 of 3 EV manufacturing licenses. The applicants pool consisted of EV enterprises from nationwide.[12] EVs qualify for subsidies offered by China's central and local governments, on an average of $10,000 per vehicle. EVs are waived from Chinese megacities' license plate fees that apply to ICE vehicles, on an average of $14,000 per license plate.

The company plans to expand its market to the United States, as the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) approved in 2019 its Model EX3 and Model K22 cars to be exported into the U.S.[13] The company finally shipped 50–100 EVs to USA at end of May/early June 2019.

Kandi had low sales of EV in first quarter of 2019 due to delay of government subsidies and restructuring of the JV. They plan to ramp up production for the remaining portion of 2019 and have a non-binding framework agreement with DIDI to deliver 300,000 EVs over the next 5 years. They plan to ship 50–100 EVs to USA at end of May/early June 2019. They will first start with EX3 model and then K22. As of August 2019, zero EVs were produced for shipping.

The EX3 debuted on November 1, 2017 as Kandi's first SUV. It has a top range of 380 km (236 Miles) and top speed of 110 km/H (68 Miles/H) on a single charge. It was first exhibited at a launch event on March 26, 2018.[14][15] Being the electric version of the Geely Vision X3,[16] it is approved for China's tax exemption on new energy vehicles.[17]

The EX3 SUV qualifies for the full $7,500 U.S. Federal Tax Credit, with its starting price being $29,995.[18][19]

The Kandi EV CarShare is a carsharing program in the city of Hangzhou. The system operates only with Kandi EV all-electric cars, which are available to customers in automated garages that run like vending machines. The rental price is US$3.25 per hour. Leasing is available from US$130 to US$160 per month, which includes insurance, maintenance, and the electric power through swapping batteries at the program garages. Then, Kandi recharges the batteries at its convenience. The leasing option, called "Long Lease," is available from 1- to 3-year contracts.[20]

Kandi Technologies plans on making 100,000 cars available to the residents of Hangzhou over the two years. It is also planning to expand into 2–3 other Chinese cities during 2014.[20]

In 2019, Kandi Technologies signed a non-binding framework with a ride-sharing alliance to provide 300,000 EVs within 5 years.[21]

Executing its commitment to ride-sharing, Kandi JV signs a non-binding agreement with Cao Cao Zhuan Che as the supplier for 20,000 electric vehicles.[22]

Rear view of a Kandi K17A EV (Based on the Geely Englon SC5-RV) police cruiser in Hangzhou, China.

K17A debuted on August 5, 2016. The K17A is Kandi's first EV.

K23's production started at the Hainan facility on March 28, 2018. Its top range is 300 km (186 miles) and its top speed is 100 km/H (62 Miles/H).[23]