The first batch of BYD K9 electric buses roll off the production line. [Photo/qingdaochina.org]

The first electric vehicle to come out of Chinese carmaker BYD's newly-built Qingdao plant, the K9 electric bus, rolled off the line on June 16, according to Qingdao Daily.

The facility is expected to manufacture up to 5,000 buses annually, worth 10 billion yuan ($1.5 billion).

Built at a total cost of 3 billion yuan, the plant covers 66 hectares. The facility will also act as BYD's Shandong headquarters, export center for its electric buses and its research development center.

"It's a milestone for the new-energy automobile industry of Qingdao," said the city's mayor, Zhang Xinqi.

He hoped that Qingdao BYD could research and develop more green high-end products and become a pioneer for new-energy vehicles in the industry.

In 2015, BYD sold some 62,000 electric vehicles, with a year-on-year growth of 235 percent, topping the global market.

Wang Chuanfu, the CEO of BYD, said that BYD considered its Qingdao base as the starting point for further achievements and advances in high-quality green cars.