(Yicai) March 29 -- BAIC Group has said Zhang Jianyong, the vice chairman of Beijing’s state assets manager, will be its new chairman. He previously worked at the Chinese state-owned auto giant for 20 years.

Zhang, 48, will replace 60-year-old Jiang Deyi as chairman, Beijing-based BAIC said on March 27.

Zhang joined BAIC in 2003, where he served as financial manager and deputy general manager, as well as director of its new energy vehicle unit BAIC BluePark New Energy Technology for nearly a year. He was transferred to the Beijing State-Owned Assets Supervision Administration Commission in November 2022.

BAIC’s car sales jumped 18 percent to 1.7 million units last year, while revenue rose 7 percent to CNY480.3 billion (USD66.5 billion). But revenue at Beijing Benz Automotive, the 51:49 joint venture with Germany’s Mercedes Benz, fell 9 percent to EUR22.5 billion (USD24.2 billion).

BAIC has been committed to the electrification of its vehicles in recent years. NEVs accounted for 46 percent of its own-brand sales last year, with the figure expected to reach 60 percent next year and 85 percent by 2030.

BAIC BluePark, which owns electric vehicle brand Arcfox, is still in the red. In January, the unit said it expected a net loss of CNY5.2 billion to CNY5.7 billion (USD719.9 million to USD789.1 million) for last year, compared with CNY5.5 billion the year before.

Editors: Dou Shicong, Futura Costaglione