China's biggest ride-hailing company Didi Chuxing said Monday it has set up a joint venture with state-owned BAIC's new-energy vehicle unit.

Didi-backed Xiaoju Auto Solutions and BAIC BJEV will develop electric vehicles and "networked cars," which utilize integrated systems that allow communication among vehicles, roads and pedestrians, local media Caijing reported.

China’s minister of industry and information technology said recently that the country's automotive sector will reach the goal of producing and selling 2 million new-energy vehicles in 2020, even though the industry continues to rely heavily on government subsidies to sell them. That amount would be double the sales total last year.

Related: China's Top Electric-Car Maker Plans $4.5 Billion Listing

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