(Yicai Global) Nov. 3 -- Chinese new energy vehicle maker BYD denied today that VW’s joint venture in China will buy its hybrid power systems.

Auto website Yiche.Com reported today it had learned from a source that FAW-Volkswagen Automobile will probably buy from BYD the Dual Mode-intelligent/Dual Mode-Powerful hybrid system and use it in some of its main models next year, starting with the Audi A4L which is popular in China.

“The online rumor is not true,” Li Yunfei, BYD’s head of public relations, posted on Weibo.

Wang Chuanfu, founder and chairman of BYD, recently led a team of technical engineers from the firm’s battery arm FinDreams Powertrain and visited the research and development centers of FAW Hongqi and FAW-Volkswagen and shared with them the application of its blade battery and DM-i hybrid system.

BYD and FAW Group also launched a joint venture battery project in February. With a total investment of CNY13.5 billion (USD1.85 billion), the project will have the capability to produce enough batteries for 1 million electric vehicles.

BYD is the leading NEV automaker in terms of sales in China, and is also a battery, electric drive, and automobile chip supplier. The firm has been promoting exports of core automobile parts. It provides FAW Hongqi and Ford with blade batteries, Skyworth Auto and Dongfeng Sokon with the DM-i hybrid system, and Toyota with blade batteries, motors and electric control systems.

The DM-i hybrid system has an internal combustion engine and electric motor on board, reducing consumption of gasoline and improving the vehicle’s performance. BYD has used the system on its Qin, Song, and Tang models. Its Qin Plus consumes 3.8 liters of gasoline per 100 kilometers when it runs out of electricity and can run up to 1,200 km when fully charged and fueled.

Editor: Tom Litting