Chinese drone maker EHang’s latest thrust of promoting drone technology in the low altitude economy seems to be bearing fruits; with the company scoring a partnership deal that will see it establishing another drone manufacturing plant in Hefei, China.

The company has announced that it reached an agreement with car manufacturer Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Group (JAC Motors) and technology services provider Hefei Guoxian Holdings (Guoxian Holdings), whose intended low altitude aircraft manufacturing plant will integrate advanced technology, standardisation, and automation to produce intelligent and pilotless electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft (eVTOL).

“Under the cooperation agreement, the three partners will collaborate for R&D, manufacturing, and sales of this new type of eVTOL aircraft, to accelerate the technological advancements, industrialisation and production capacity growth.” EHang said in a statement.

“The partnership will integrate the new energy vehicle industrial chain in Hefei with aircraft manufacturing technology, promote the standardisation of key aircraft components, establish unified industry standards, and cultivate a comprehensive industrial cluster.

“This initiative aims to foster the development of the low-altitude economy and a new multi-dimensional transportation ecosystem.”

A listed manufacturer of passenger, commercial and electric vehicles exported to all corners of the world, JAC will leverage its expertise, including mature production line processes, advanced manufacturing capabilities, and efficient production capacity and supply chain management, to scale up and automate eVTOL aircraft production.

EHang will contribute its cutting-edge R&D and production technologies in the eVTOL aircraft sector, along its extensive experience in airworthiness certification and operations, providing essential technical support and assurance for low-altitude aviation in the partnership.

Guoxian Holdings will facilitate policy support and create a favourable development environment for the cooperation.

“The partners will conduct joint research on the automated production technologies and processes of low-altitude aircraft, plan to build an aircraft manufacturing base in Hefei, and optimise product design and production processes by integrating their respective resources, collectively accelerating the commercialisation of low-altitude aviation in the future.”

EHang meanwhile will be ramping up its sales pitch to more local governments for the application of drone technology in the lower airspace. It will help them prepare for upcoming commercial operations of the low-altitude economy with stuff like infrastructure construction, personnel training, and production capacity expansion.

The Hefei municipal government already has a strategic cooperation agreement with EHang in place, which has seen the establishment of two Urban Air Mobility (“UAM”) eVTOL operation centres at Luogang Central Park since October 2023. Now the new partnership for the manufacturing plant will further meet the growing market demand for pilotless passenger-carrying aircraft and lay the foundation for the large-scale deployment of eVTOLs once the low-altitude economy enters the commercial operation phase.

“EHang is committed to advancing a full-scale low-altitude air mobility ecosystem and continuously collaborating with upstream and downstream partners to strengthen the industrial chain for pilotless eVTOL products,” said Huazhi Hu, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of EHang.

“By joining forces with JAC Motors and Guoxian Holdings, we are building a strong foundation for future three-dimensional transportation ecosystems. With our combined efforts, we believe that the low-altitude economy will achieve groundbreaking advancements in intelligence, automation, and environmental sustainability, writing a new chapter for China’s high-quality development of the low-altitude economy in Hefei.”

Xingchu Xiang, Chairman, and General Manager of JAC Motors, said: “As a comprehensive automotive enterprise group integrating the R&D, production, sales, and service of full series commercial and passenger vehicles, and covering a wide range of fields including automotive mobility and financial services, JAC Motors is strategically partnering with EHang and Guoxian Holdings to develop the low-altitude economy.

“By leveraging Hefei’s high-quality resources, this collaboration aims to drive the high-quality growth of emerging industries. We look forward to mass production of low-altitude eVTOLs in Hefei and believe that our trilateral partnership will achieve outstanding results in this innovative-driven city.”