Keen on expanding its operations to become the leading autonomous aerial vehicle supplier in the world – especially for passenger transportation and logistics – manufacturer EHang has joined forces with a Chinese bank and a Spanish air navigation services provider.

In China, EHang’s strategic partnership with the Guangzhou branch of the Agricultural Bank of China – one of the ten largest commercial banks in the world – will give the drone company access “comprehensive banking services, including indicative credit facilities of RMB1 billion (about $150million), to support EHang’s operations in China”, according to a statement released by the company.

The company added that the partnership would be instrumental for its long-term sustainable business growth, including research and development, manufacturing, and sales and operations.

“We are very pleased to enter into a strategic partnership with ABC Guangzhou Branch,” said Huazhi Hu, Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of EHang. “The RMB1 billion indicative facilities for cooperation will further diversify our funding channels and facilitate our financial flexibility and liquidity to support the continuous execution of our strategic plans and drive our growth momentum in the long run.”

The partnership would be the first with an emerging technology company for ABC Guangzhou, which says it is committed backing high-tech enterprises in the country

“The strategic partnership with EHang is ABC Guangzhou Branch’s first with an AAV technology company in the emerging UAM sector,” said Dalong Li, President of ABC Guangzhou Branch. “We strongly support the improvement of the urban transportation and are committed to providing high-quality financial services to high-tech enterprises in this field. The partnership also demonstrates our determination to actively implement China’s 14^th Five-Year Plan and support the development of strategic emerging industries.”

Meanwhile in Europe, EHang has announced that it will be working with Spanish national air navigation services provider ENAIRE to promote research, development and innovation in the U-Space and Urban Air Mobility (UAM) fields in Spain and Europe.

As a company of the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda (MITMA), ENAIRE provides en-route control services for all flights and overflights in Spain through five control centres in Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Gran Canaria and Palma; as well as for the approaches to all the airports in the country.

The company also supplies communication, navigation and surveillance services to 45 air control towers; while 21 airports use its aerodrome control services, including airports with the highest traffic in the country.

Soon, ENAIRE will also be providing common information services for U-Space airspace, as the European Union moves to integrate drone technology into the lower atmosphere.

On this front, ENAIRE will collaborate with EHang in finding national and international innovation initiatives on U-Space and the development of AAV operations for the execution of activities of common interest in U-Space and Urban Air Mobility in Spain and Europe.

“The collaboration will, among others, focus on the research of solutions and development of potential procedures, use cases, digital tools, and prototypes,” said EHang in a statement.

“It will also allow the parties to promote the deployment of U-Space and UAM services, and contribute to the digital and technological development for the provision of aeronautical services.”

Ehang has been part of a number of EU consortiums that are working hard to find safe and effective ways of introducing unmanned aerial systems into the busy urban skies in the continent and is hoping its latest partnership support the development and implementation of this cause, and the sustainable implementation of unmanned aerial mobility (UAM).

“The signing of this collaboration protocol with EHang, is an example of ENAIRE’s commitment to the industry, to promote the development and early deployment of U-Space services and Urban Air Mobility in Spain, given the future role of ENAIRE in the provision of Common Information Services (CIS) for U-Space airspace in national territory,” said María Luz de Mateo, the Business Development Director responsible of U-Space at ENAIRE.