Centenary United (1959.HK) to Take Electric Vehicle-related Businesses as Key Development Business Strategy

(25 December 2021, Hong Kong) Centenary United Holdings Limited (“Centenary United” and its subsidiaries collectively referred as the “Group”) (Stock Code: 1959.HK), the leading 4S dealership group in Zhongshan City, Guangdong Province, China, is pleased to announce that for the purpose of conforming to national development policies, promoting the fulfillment of corporate social responsibilities and providing new growth points for corporate development and in views of the current market and industry development trends, the Group’s development strategy will focus on electric vehicles and optimizing relevant smart travel experience, including but not limited to the electric vehicle brand dealership business, the charging network business, and the online ride-hailing service with electric vehicles business as one of the medium and long-term key development strategies.

According to the Development Plan for the New-Energy Vehicle Industry (2021–2035) released by the State Council of China in October 2020, sales volume of new NEVs will account for 20% of the total sales volume of new vehicles by 2025. By 2035, pure electric vehicles will become the mainstream in the sales of new ones. Data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers showed that sales volume of NEVs accounted for 13.4% of the total sales volume of vehicles in China in 2021, which demonstrates the huge development potential of new-energy vehicles in the future. Under the goal of “carbon peak and carbon neutrality” and national policies for the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the Group believes that the Company is well positioned to replicate the successful experience accumulated over a long period of time in Zhongshan to other cities in the Greater Bay Area. As such, the Group plans to take the electric vehicle business as one of the key development strategies in the future.

Electric Vehicle Brand Dealership Business

The Group has been actively striving for the dealership of competitive electric vehicle brands. This year, the Group acquired the right to sell vehicles of seven electric vehicle brands, namely Aion New Energy, Leapmotor, Volkswagen ID, Ora, Dongfeng New Energy, EVH and SOL. The sales territories have covered Zhongshan, Jiangmen and other cities in the Greater Bay Area.

The Group will continue to expand the sales and service network of electric vehicles in Guangdong Province, especially in the Greater Bay Area. The Company aims to further increase the proportion of the sales volume of electric vehicles in the overall sales in 2022.

Charging Network Business
This year, the Group cooperated with Guangzhou Wancheng Wanchong New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. (“Guangzhou Wancheng Wanchong”) and Guangzhou TELD New Energy Co., Ltd. (“Guangzhou TELD”), respectively. The cooperation has facilitated the construction of the Group’s electric vehicle charging network in the Greater Bay Area. As at 31 December 2021, Guangdong Centenary United New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. (“Centenary United New Energy”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Group, built 21 charging stations with a total of 121 charging posts in Zhongshan, Zhuhai, Foshan, Guangzhou, Dongguan and other cities in the Area. There are 16 charging stations with 171 charging posts under construction. In addition, the Group currently plans to build around 60 charging stations with around 600 charging posts in 2022, which will help promote the all-round development of the Group’s electric vehicle brand dealership business and Online Ride-hailing Business.

Online Ride-hailing Service with Electric Vehicles

Following the trend of online ride-hailing business, the Group purchased a total of approximately 400 GAC Aion electric vehicles through Guangdong Centenary United New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. (“Centenary United New Energy”), an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of the Group, and recruited drivers and connected them with mobility platforms. It conducted the operation and management of online ride-hailing service with integrated businesses covering the management of vehicles, drivers and platforms.

Used Vehicles
The Group unleashed the long-accumulated potential in one-stop auto services for used vehicles to the used-vehicle business of trade-ins of gasoline-powered cars with electric vehicles , aiming to provide a broader platform for future development of its after-sales business and increase business profitability. Zhongshan New Century Second-hand Car Market Co., Ltd. (“New Century Second-hand Car”), the Group’s indirect wholly-owned subsidiary, entered into a cooperation framework agreement on used-vehicle trade-in service with Beijing Leading Automobile Sales Co., Ltd., an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Li Auto Inc. (HKEX: 2015), in April 2021 to provide used-vehicle acquisition service for Li Auto’s customers.

Mr. Law Hau Kit, Chairman and CEO of the Group, said, “The Group has always been staying in tune with the latest market trends and keeping abreast of national policies. By leveraging on the Group’s extrensive experience in operating 4S stores and automobile-related businesses in Zhongshan, together with the electric vehicle brand dealership business, the charging network business, and the Online Ride-hailing service which developed for the electric vehicles business, can allow businesses to promote each other and generate virtuous cycle to maximise the synergy effect of various electric vehicle-related businesses in order to achieve ideal benefits. In order to achieve the business strategy of “Entering the Greater Bay Area and Embracing New Energy”, the Group will actively seek new partners and grasp the opportunities from the new-energy vehicle experience in the Greater Bay Area and Hong Kong private cars travelling to the Mainland. The Group hopes to seize the market share in the electric vehicle-related fields as soon as possible in order to create higher value for the shareholders of the Company.”

-Ends-

About Centenary United Holdings Limited (stock code: 1959. HK)

Centenary United was established in 1999 and is the largest 4S dealership group in Zhongshan with a focus on mid-to-high-end Sino-foreign, international and new-energy vehicles brands including Jaguar and Land Rover, FAW Volkswagen, Volkswagen New Jetta, Cadillac, Buick, Chevrolet, FAW Toyota, Dongfeng Nissan, Dongfeng Venucia, Beijing Hyundai and six electric vehicle brands, which are GAC Aion, Leapmotor, Great Wall ORA, Volkswagen ID, Dongfeng New Energy and Electric House. The Group also offers a comprehensive array of integrated auto services such as repair services (including the repair and maintenance services, spare parts sales, car care services and used vehicle warranty services), the sale of accessories, insurance agency services and other value-added services, actively deploys the new energy vehicles, charging stations and online ride-hailing businesses. The Group’s charging stations spread across Zhongshan, Zhuhai, Foshan, Dongguan and Guangzhou, creating a unique one-stop automobile ecosystem in Zhongshan.