BEIJING Automotive Group (BAIC) will list its electric vehicle unit by injecting it into another listed subsidiary, boosting its financial muscle as the battle for the country’s hotly contested green car market heats up.

The backdoor listing values the unit, Beijing Electric Vehicle Co., at US$4.5 billion and comes as China engineers a dramatic shift away from conventional gasoline cars with strict quotas for electric and hybrid vehicles set to come into effect next year.

The shift has prompted major investment and a spate of deals between global automakers, tech firms and local rivals as companies rush to bring out new vehicle models and set up local ventures and facilities in the world’s biggest car market.

The deal is also a rare listing for China’s green car sector and marks the first time that a State-owned manufacturer of so-called new energy vehicles (NEVs) will debut on one of the country’s main stock exchanges.

Beijing Electric, established in 2009, said this month that sales jumped 98 percent in 2017 to 103,199 vehicles.

That puts it just behind BYD Co., whose NEV sales last year rose 13.5 percent to 113,669.

Under the deal, ChengDu QianFeng Electronics Co., one of the listed arms of BAIC, will buy the electric car unit and then sell 761.1 million shares at 37.66 yuan (US$5.88) per share. Beijing Electric will become the listed entity. (SD-Agencies)