(Yicai) Jan. 3 -- HiPhi has rebutted online information that all work at the Chinese new energy vehicle startup has been suspended.

Operations are normal, the Shanghai-based carmaker said on Weibo yesterday. Development, production, marketing, and deliveries are advancing as usual, it added.

Information circulated online the same day claiming that all work at HiPhi had ceased and shipments and new project development had stopped. In a separate conversation in an online forum, a person said that the carmaker had halted deliveries since its battery supplier did not provide the products, with a relevant hashtag trending on Weibo soon after.

The forum deleted the thread and warned the member who posted it, HiPhi noted, adding that the startup had reported the incident to the police. 

Last October, HiPhi also denied online information that it sacked some employees, saying it was just a normal personnel adjustment.

Despite HiPhi denying all of the information, its low sales show that the carmaker faces challenges in the market, according to an analyst.

HiPhi's three models on sale, the X, Y, and Z, priced between CNY340,000 and CNY800,000 (USD47,600 and USD112,000), are the most expensive among domestic NEV startups. But they sell less well than rivals at 4,265 units in the first 11 months of last year, 4,520 in 2022, and 4,237 in 2021.

HiPhi was set up in 2019 by its parent firm Human Horizons Technology's founder and Chairman Ding Lei, who previously worked as an executive at Chinese auto giant SAIC Motor and the car arm of video platform Leshi.

Human Horizons and Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Investment signed a USD5.6 million deal to form a joint venture last June, planning to collaborate on vehicle development, production, and sales. 

Editor: Martin Kadiev