(Yicai Global) Sept. 27 -- Shares in China Evergrande New Energy Vehicle Group slumped to a four-year low today after the electric car unit of struggling real estate giant China Evergrande Group said it will not proceed with its planned secondary listing in Shanghai, throwing its mass production schedule into disarray.

Evergrande NEV’s share price [HKG:0708] closed down 9.42 percent at HKD2.02 (USD26). The stock has lost 97 percent of its value since February as the carmaker battles to find the funds to take its autos to market.

Evergrande NEV will terminate its plan to issue Chinese yuan-denominated shares, the Guangzhou-based EV maker said yesterday.

Evergrande NEV is unable to meet its fundraising target, an analyst told Yicai Global. Last September the company said it intended to raise as much as CNY38.9 billion (USD6 billion) in the listing.

Evergrande NEV, which has yet to sell a single car, was meant to begin mass production in the fourth quarter and achieve large-scale deliveries next year. However, unless there is a large injection of funds, the firm is unlikely to achieve these targets, a company insider told Yicai Global.

Evergrande NEV is facing a cashflow crisis and has had to postpone some payments to suppliers and construction funds, which has brought these projects to a halt, it said on Sept. 24. The company is looking to raise cash by selling assets and seeking investors. If no progress is made soon, it will greatly impact the firm’s daily operations and its delivery targets, it added.

The huge investment that is needed to make electric cars has driven the company heavily into the red and its parent company, engulfed in its own financial crisis, is no longer able to assist. Evergrande NEV’s deficit nearly doubled in the first half from the same period last year to CNY4.8 billion (USD745.9 million) on revenue of just CNY37 million (USD5.7 million), according to its latest earnings report.

This is a far cry from just over a year ago when Evergrande NEV was the country’s most valuable emerging electric carmaker. Last July Evergrande NEV said that it is developing its NEV business at full speed and aims to become the world’s largest and most powerful green energy car company with the next three to five years. In August that year, the firm unveiled six vehicle prototypes but it is unclear when they will see the light of day.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Kim Taylor