Volkswagen Group plans to roll out autonomous vehicles and offer mobility services such as ride-hailing and car-sharing in Hefei with local partner Jianghuai Automobile Co.
The services are part of an agreement the German auto giant signed with JAC and the Hefei city government Monday in Barcelona, Spain.
The focus of the partnership is developing autonomous vehicles.
VW Group's China subsidiary and JAC will pool resources and collaborate to provide autonomous mobility services, including robotaxis and autonomous fleet management, VW said.
The partnership, intended to assist Hefei's transformation into a smart city, will create opportunities for VW to test new technologies, business models and products in a connected smart city environment, the German group added.
VW didn't provide a time frame for launching self-driving vehicles in the city.
Hefei, where JAC is headquartered, is the capital of east China province Anhui. It has a population of about 8 million.
In 2017, VW and JAC established a joint venture to develop and produce electric vehicles under VW Group's Spanish Seat brand and the joint venture's proprietary Sol brand.
Seat's locally produced EVs will go on sale in two to three years, according to VW.
JAC is VW's third joint venture partner in China.
VW also operates passenger vehicle joint ventures with SAIC Motor Corp. and China FAW Group Corp.
