Following the company’s foundation back in 2012, and its acquisition of the main assets of the Saab Automobile bankruptcy estates, NEVS has been moving towards a focus on electric vehicle technology and new mobility solutions.
With that in mind, the company has opted to drop the Saab trademark, and now utilize the NEVS trademark for its products starting in 2017, according to an email sent to CleanTechnica and EVObsession.
“With sincere respect to our history and heritage, we want to be recognized as ourselves — a sustainable mobility solutions provider who are committed to the environment with a focused growth plan with its own brand as a corner stone,” commented Mattias Bergman, President NEVS.
While the company’s long-term plans are essentially global in nature, the Chinese market is clearly a priority — partly owing to the fact that the company is owned by NME Holdings, Tianjin Bin Hai Hi-tech Industrial Development Area, and State Research Information Technology Company.
And also to the fact that China’s electric vehicle market will be growing rapidly in the coming years, and represents a huge growth opportunity.
NEVS already has a number of agreements in place in the country to aid in its growth there — including a strategic partnership agreement with Panda New Energy to deliver 150,000 electric cars, as well as a further 100,000 electric commercial vehicles. A separate collaboration with the world’s biggest electric utility firm, Chinese State Grid, is also in the works.
“I believe the tipping point for electric vehicles is very near in many key markets. We aim to contribute to a more sustainable city planning, and together with our partners such as State Grid and Panda New Energy jointly introduce a new business model for mobility,” stated Jonas Hernqvist, VP Sales & Marketing NEVS.
That’s not the story in the Swedish press. They desperately wanted to keep the SAAB brand but the swedish defence company SAAB had enough.