China unveils new electric car the S18

China's largest homegrown auto maker, Chery Automobile, has debuted its new plugin hybrid that is able to run 90 miles on a single charge. The S18 can be fully charged at a home electrical outlet in about five hours and can hit speeds over 70mph. The S18 uses iron-phosphate based lithium-ion batteries.

"Our electric vehicle uses the world's latest technology, highly efficient energy conservation and is easy to use," Yuan Tao, the company's deputy general manager, said at a ceremony held earlier this week at Chery's headquarters in eastern China's Anhui province. "The pricing will be very suitable for families," Yuan said in a statement.

Chery did not give details on pricing or timing for introducing the vehicle to the market. However, the Shanghai Daily cited an unnamed company official as saying that Chery will first supply the vehicles to government agencies for trial use and then introduce them to the retail market within a year. It said the compact sedans would cost less than less than £10,293.

China has been pushing automakers for progress on electric vehicles as part of its effort to limit the country's growing dependence on imported oil and to help clear smog from its polluted cities .