Ideanomics Inc said in a press release that its electric vehicle division, Mobile Energy Global (MEG), has deployed a pilot platform in Nanjing to streamline energy sales, and it will serve “as a blueprint” for a broader rollout in the city as well as other big Chinese cities.

In a statement, the New York-based company, which has offices in Beijing, said the pilot in Nanjing’s Jiangsu province will focus on the “interoperability of three critical components” in EV energy consumption: payment systems, charging stations, and energy supply chains.

The company said the energy sales pilot in Nanjing will help MEG generate revenues from “prepaid energy sales to commercial EV fleet operators as well as revenues from point-of-sale energy consumption” at charging stations.

Nanjing’s proximity to MEG’s Qingdao facilities will help it get quick feedback and tweak the pilot program. The company noted that Nanjing, which has a population of 8.5 million, was suitable for the pilot, as it is an industrial technology R&D hub that has attracted foreign investment from companies like Siemens, Ericsson, Volkswagen, Ford, IBM, Lucent, Samsung, and SAP that have massive research centers in Nanjing.

The MEG energy sales pilot will focus on the convergence of payment systems, charging stations, and energy supply chains. It will integrate gas, LNG, and electricity sales into a “single secure platform payment interface” with China Union Pay, said the company. The new solution will deliver advanced payment features such as facial recognition and other contactless payment technologies. The platform is expected to launch by July 1.

“The team has been excited to get the Nanjing project underway, since our announcement in September 2019,” said Ideanomics CEO Alf Poor.

“The rapid technological advancement in EV charging meant we were able to evaluate many new-to-market EV charging solutions which enable the types of fast-charging and streamlined payment solutions required to ensure adoption and a successful pilot program,” he added.

The Ideanomics boss said that the pilot was focused on one “the most significant aspects” of MEG’s business.

“Our Sales and Financing divisions serve to help enable the transition from fossil fuels to EV for commercial fleet operators, with the ultimate strategic goal being our participation in the shift of energy consumption,” noted Poor.

The company said the pilot will show supercharging stations, provided by CATL in PetroChina gas stations in Nanjing. MEG and PetroChina have explored various charging technologies and, along with CATL, expect to begin converting gas pumps to EV superchargers by the fourth quarter.

Lastly, the pilot will focus on the energy supply chains that need to exist throughout the EV ecosystem. Through Sun Seven Stars Investment Group Limited1 (SSSIG) and its participation in China’s New Infrastructure Investments, MEG has entered into an agreement with SSSIG to exclusively manage the energy supply chain (EPC) for projects in Jiangsu.

On March 27, Ideanomics announced that MEG struck a strategic cooperation agreement with China Tower, GCL Group, State Grid, Dongfang Energy Sales Cloud, and TMR Energy for MEG’s IoT/IoV 5G Energy Services.