LeEco’s Smart Car Project Gets A Shot On The Arm With Investments

Microlink Group, the Chinese conglomerate has given a shot in the arm to LeEco's smart cat unit with an investment of $50 million. The companies announced the agreement yesterday in Beijing.

LeEco is competing with Tesla in the electric car race and the investment comes as a confidence booster for the technology giant. The smart car unit of LeEco revealed a concept all-electric car in April 2016 with investments from Faraday Future and Aston Martin.

The electric car from LeEco is expected to be offered to customers by the end of 2017. The company said it's planning to build a factory in Zhejiang province and wants to construct an environmentally conscious town where tourists can experience self-driving cars.

LeEco has been aggressively pushing ahead with the development of its electric car, in May and June, it announced plans to create an automobile e-commerce unit and an electric car sharing platform.

As for Microlink Group, a holding entity which has interests in real estate, mining, hotels, and liquor will help LeEco in its smart car project to expand its reach within China and support to achieve LeEco's ambitious targets.

Microlink Group was founded in 1990 and recorded RMB60.5 billion in 2015 and has interests in the automobile industry.