Zambian state-owned power company, Zesco, has announced a partnership with Chinese construction company, PowerChina, to construct three large solar power plants that will add a further 600MW of electricity to the African nation’s grid. The signing of the deal, worth a reported US$548 million, coincides with the news that the Zambian government is aiming to…
Shortly after US President Donald Trump signed a law blocking Chinese telecommunications group Huawei from using US-made hardware and software, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC) reported it had received $2.2 billion in funding. The move is part of China’s efforts to end its reliance on US chips. Shanghai-based SMIC, which creates around 6 000 14-nanometre…
School pupils in Beijing are sporting smart wristbands that track real-time body temperatures. The wristbands are one of a variety of wearables Chinese researchers say may help to track, curb and prevent the spread of COVID-19. Final year students attending junior high schools in Beijing have returned to class where they are piloting technology that…
The Chinese Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation shifted its 2020 Mars Mission plan into overdrive, successfully launching a heavy-lift Long March 5B rocket, on 5 May. This was as the globe limped into month five of the Covid-19 pandemic. After a little reported launch failure in April, a new site, on Hainan Island, a landmass…
Chinese video-sharing app TikTok is targeting growth in African countries, as it offers a new platform for influencers across the continent. TikTok has been raising awareness of its benefits through “creator sessions” for youths in Nairobi, Kenya. It has partnered with Transsion, a Chinese phone maker with a major presence in Africa, to boost a…
TikTok, a social media platform owned by Chinese parent company Bytedance, has been downloaded over one billion times. The app, which has been called the “last sunny corner of the internet” by The Economist, is a video sharing social media app where users create, share and discuss short media content. Learnbonds.com gathered data that indicate…
Shenzhen based automobile manufacturer, BYD, has entered the European electric passenger vehicle market. The BYD Tang EV600 will make its European debut in Norway before the year’s end, the group announced in early May. BYD, the second-largest electric vehicle producer in the world, enjoys a strong presence in the e-bus and public transport sector in…
China has begun trials on the e-RMB or digital Yuan, the world’s first digital currency to be rolled out by a major economic player. The digital Yuan will debut in four of China’s largest cities, according to local media. After initial scepticism about coin offerings, China’s central bank will launch the digital currency before its…
The world’s second largest manufacturer of electric vehicles, BYD, has launched the “Blade Battery”, which it says will significantly increase driver safety. Company president and chairman, Wang Chuanfu, unveiled the battery via an online launch at the end of March. Wang said the battery design reflects BYD’s commitment to making electric vehicles safer, as well as…
Restrictions on movement, production and trade have seen the global automotive industry grind to a halt. But China, once the epicentre of the Covid-19 outbreak, is seeing its employees slowly returning to work. After car sales in China fell 80% in February during the apex of the pandemic, markets a month later are easing back…