China gives EV sector billions of yuan in subsidies. CATL, SAIC Motor and BYD Topped.

$BYD COMPANY (01211.HK)$ China's generosity to the electric vehicle sector when it comes to handing out subsidies has come under fresh scrutiny since the European commission announced an investigation into the matter. An analysis of listed companies shows that substantial amounts of government money are indeed flowing to the strategically important industry.

Among more than 5,000 mainland Chinese listed companies, five of the top 10 recipients of government grants during the first half of this year were local manufacturers of EVs or the batteries that power them, according to data compiled by Chinese information provider Wind and a survey by Nikkei Asia.
The articles reported following top Chinese listed companies received government subsidies:
1) Contemporary Amperex Technology, or CATL, tops the list, having received 2.85 billion yuan ($391 million) in government subsidies for the six-month period, almost a threefold increase from the year before. The Shenzhen-listed EV battery maker did not disclose details on the subsidies. The company acknowledged Nikkei Asia's questions about the reason for the sharp increase, but did not provide an answer by the time of publication.
2) Among EV assemblers, Shanghai-listed SAIC Motor was the largest recipient of government assistance, bagging over 2 billion yuan in subsidies, almost double from a year ago. The state-owned automaker is attempting to shift from making gasoline-powered cars, with heavy reliance on two separate joint ventures with Volkswagen and General Motors, to promoting its own brand of EVs, but the company provided no details on its subsidies.
3) BYD, China's leader in EV sales and set to surpass Volkswagen this year as the country's top-selling auto brand, closely followed SAIC on the subsidy list. It received 1.78 billion yuan in the first half, or close to three times as much as the year before. It offered no details in filings beyond a statement that over 1 billion yuan of the total grants were provided for "autos and auto-related" purposes. The company also runs a sizable smartphone business.
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