"We've now got the green light to move ahead, and we are especially pleased to receive the business license just a few months after signing the contract," Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche said in a statement. "It will accelerate our joint efforts to create an all-new electric vehicle for the Chinese market."

The joint venture will use BYD's battery technology and e-drive systems as well as Daimler's expertise in electric vehicle architecture and safety. It will be marketed under a new brand to be jointly owned by BYD and Daimler.

German and Chinese engineers are working together at a technical center in Shenzhen, where BYD is based. Both companies soon will dispatch more engineers to the center, according to BYD.