(Yicai Global) July 28 -- Chinese battery manufacturer Eve Energy said it will build a large lithium battery plant in Thailand to better serve its Southeast Asian clients.

Eve Energy signed a memorandum of understanding with Thailand’s Energy Absolute Public to set up a joint venture that will be responsible for the construction and operation of a plant in Thailand with an annual production capacity of at least six gigawatt-hours, the Huizhou-based company announced late yesterday.

EA will own 51 percent of the JV and Eve Energy the remaining 49 percent, but future profits will be equally split between the two companies, Eve Energy noted.

Eve Energy will be responsible for the construction, production, operation management, product sales, and new product research and development, while EA will focus on establishing a good relationship with the local government to receive subsidies, financing, and product marketing, Eve Energy added.

Bangkok-based EA is engaged in many new energy businesses, including lithium batteries and electric cars, buses, and ferries, according to the company’s website.

The rapid development of the new energy vehicle market in recent years encouraged Eve Energy to actively invest in expanding its lithium battery production capacity. In addition to projects in China, the firm announced in early June that it would also invest EUR1.3 billion (USD1.4 billion) to build a power battery plant in Hungary.

Eve Energy’s shares [SHE: 300014] were trading down 0.5 percent at CNY58.09 (USD8.10) as of 9.50 a.m. today.

Editor: Futura Costaglione