16 Chinese state enterprises to set up electric auto union

　　An electric auto union consisting of 16 Chinese central state-owned enterprises (SOEs) will be officially founded in Beijing next week, which will help China develop more internationally competitive electric car brands, Guangzhou Daily reported today.

　　The report said that the industrial union will be committed to building an open technology platform that can promote the industry's overall development as well as co-developing and sharing new electric auto technologies by unifying technical standards.

　　The union's short-term goal is to promote the unification of related technology standards and coordinate the development of upstream and downstream companies. Its medium-term and long-term goals are to master the core technology for electric vehicles and build internationally competitive Chinese electric car brands.

　　The union members will sign an agreement to clearly define the ownership of technologies before launching research projects. As for technology sharing, members that take part in co-development can employ the technology for free.

　　Members that have not participated in co-development can pay a discounted price if they want to use the technology, and non-member enterprises can also purchase the technology.