Hefei, capital of East China's Anhui province, is emerging as a new magnet for carmakers and suppliers, as local authorities are highlighting the development of smart electric vehicles.

Earlier this month, seven new energy vehicle suppliers signed agreements to establish operations in the city, joining the ranks of automakers including Volkswagen and Nio.

Volkswagen sees Hefei as its headquarters for the smart electric vehicle era, where its R&D speed is now 30 percent faster than back in Germany.

The German car giant attributes the improvement to factors including the availability of sound local supplies.

The seven companies, which specialize in areas like intelligent driving, sensors and component development, inked the deal on Dec 6 at the 2024 China Intelligent Electric Vehicle Industry Chain Top 100 Forum.

Held on Dec 5-7, the forum was hosted by the Diancheren Industrial Platform, with co-sponsorship by the Shushan district government, GUiTEK Service Platform Co and Xyuan Capital.

"Currently, our platform encompasses over 3,000 enterprises across the entire intelligent electric vehicle industry chain, enabling precise connections with target companies to strengthen the local NEV industry chain," said Ma Qiancheng, founder of the Diancheren Industrial Platform.

This year's forum attracted over 300 companies in the automotive industry and investing firms, aiming to seize the immense opportunities presented by Hefei's NEV market.

Already recognized as a major NEV production hub, Hefei's comprehensive approach — bolstered by forward-thinking planning and complete supply chains — has positioned it as one of China's top regions for NEV manufacturing.

By 2027, Hefei aims to achieve an NEV cluster revenue exceeding 1 trillion yuan ($137 billion), with over 3 million vehicles produced annually and four enterprises each boasting revenue at or over 100 billion yuan.

Hefei's new energy vehicle industry is experiencing robust growth. As of late October, Hefei's NEV production surpassed 1 million units, significantly exceeding last year's total of 746,000 units.

By the end of the year, their production is expected to exceed 1.3 million units, reflecting a year-on-year growth of 74 percent, faster than the industry average in the country.

From January to November, NEV production and sales in China totaled 11.35 million units and 11.26 million units respectively, up 34.6 percent and 35.6 percent year-on-year respectively, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

The forum also featured the release of the Top 100 Auto Suppliers Report, a comprehensive annual analysis of China's intelligent EV industry chain.