(Source: Volkswagen China)

Volkswagen China said Tuesday it has started construction of its third electric vehicle plant in China, with the first model due to start production in the second half of 2023.

The VW-JAC MEB (Modular Electrification Toolkit) plant in Hefei will be completed in mid-2022 and will use green energy in future production.

VW's first two all-electric plants in China were SAIC VW Anting and FAW-Volkswagen Foshan MEB.

VW China said it could deliver about 1.5 million new energy vehicles a year by 2025, and that VW-JAC will employ about 500 people for research and development and engineering innovation.

VW said in March that its eponymous brand plans to more than double the share of pure electric vehicles in total European car sales by 2030 to accelerate the transition to electric vehicles.

Announcing its Accelerate Strategy, the company said it expects to account for more than 70 percent of its total vehicle sales in Europe and more than 50 percent in China and the United States by 2030.