(Reuters) – The electric vehicle unit of troubled property developer China Evergrande said on Tuesday it expects a wider loss for the first half of 2024, reflecting an increase in impairment provisions.

China Evergrande New Energy Vehicle estimated a consolidated net loss of about 20.25 billion yuan ($2.84 billion) for the six months ended June 30, compared with 6.87 billion yuan in the same period last year.

The electric vehicle division, which is currently in talks with a potential buyer about a stake in the company, announced an impairment provision of around 16.74 billion yuan for the half-year.

“The company has increased the provision for impairment losses on receivables from subsidiaries, associates and joint ventures of China Evergrande,” the electric vehicle manufacturer said.

A court in Hong Kong ordered the liquidation of real estate giant China Evergrande Group in January.

China Evergrande New Energy will announce its half-year results on August 30.

By the end of 2023, the electric car manufacturer had only produced 1,700 of its Hengchi electric cars. Production at its plant in Tianjin has been suspended since the beginning of the year.

(1 US dollar = 7.1237 Chinese renminbi yuan)

(Reporting by Aaditya Govind Rao in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)