The announcement was made at the Third Annual China Green Energy Auto Development Summit Forum which was hosted by Beiqi Foton Motor Company.

The newly-established alliance, called the New Energy Sustainable Transportation International Alliance, includes Eaton, AECOM, IBM, vehicle manufacturer Foton, lithium ion battery manufacturer MGL, and electric motor provider Broad Ocean.

The alliance's first project is to design and deploy electric buses that will utilize advanced components from Eaton, Broad Ocean, and MGL.

According to Joe-Tao Zhou, the president of Eaton China, by combining expertise in city planning and smart grid infrastructure and Eaton's hybrid and electric vehicle technology NESTIA will offer energy saving solutions to cities wishing to accelerate the adoption of clean energy vehicles and it has the potential to accelerate the adoption of new technology in China.

NESTIA is part of a broader new global alliance between Eaton, AECOM and IBM which aims to facilitate the adoption of clean energy vehicles across public and private transportation sectors in key markets worldwide.