(Yicai) July 9 -- Shares of Catarc Automotive Providing Ground rose after the company said it will soon put into operation China’s first large closed test site for intelligent connected vehicles, built with an investment of CNY1.5 billion (USD206 million).

Catarc’s stock price [SHE: 301215] finished 5.1 percent higher at CNY5.37 (74 US cents) in Shenzhen today.

Located in China's eastern Jiangsu province, the test site will officially open on July 16, the Yancheng-based company announced yesterday. It features the world’s first and only real tunnel scenario within an enclosed vehicle test areas, Catarc noted.

At 13 meters below ground, the 408-meter-long tunnel has two lanes running in each direction and meets all the requirements for testing ICVs in real tunnel scenarios, enabling checks on perception, computing, decision-making, and execution functions without satellite positioning or network signals.

Moreover, the test area has a six-lane ICV performance track with a straight section of 2.1 kilometers and a maximum test speed of 160 kilometres per hour, Catarc added. Its design also meets the requirements for trialing all-purpose aircraft.

The site’s ICV city street block, which covers an area of 660,000 square meters, can handle urban, rural, and meteorological tests, Catarc said. Boasting the latest-generation base stations with advanced fifth-generation network-integrated sensing, communication, and computing capabilities, it supports self-driving and road-vehicle coordination tests under complicated road conditions and different weather conditions.

Catarc is run by the China Automobile Technology and Research Center. It mainly provides testing, experiment, and technological services for vehicles, motorcycles, and testing equipment.

Editor: Futura Costaglione