Xiaomi has won a tender to buy a plot of land in Beijing near its existing car factory for 635 million yuan ($88 million), which it plans to use for a smart connected car and components project, a city authority said on Thursday.
Winning the bid would make Xiaomi one of the few carmakers in China approved to expand capacity at a time when most of the sector is struggling with overcapacity.
Xiaomi said its new YU7 SUV is attracting more attention than the SU7 sedan, and on its app buyers have to wait up to 51 weeks to choose their Xiaomi car as the company ramps up production.
Xiaomi, the world's third-largest smartphone maker, launched the SU7 sedan last year and has been selling more vehicles per month than Tesla's Model 3 since December.
The success of the SU7 is expected to drive the company's EV offering despite intense competition in the world's largest car market.
Xiaomi has raised its target for EV deliveries this year from 300,000 to 350,000. The company had planned an annual production of 300,000 vehicles at its EV factory, which would be built in two phases.
The company will start taking orders for the YU7 from the end of June, CEO Lei Jun said on Wednesday. The market launch of the YU7 was previously scheduled for July.
The award of a 50-year lease for the 485,134-square-meter site was announced by the Beijing Municipal Commission of Planning and Natural Resources.
The land is located near the second
phase of Xiaomi's EV factory.
