Ora sets sights on UK EV sales

Chinese brand’s Renault Zoe-rivalling Cat supermini offers up to 261 miles of range

-  FELIX PAGE

The new Ora Cat, a Chinesebuilt electric hatchback due on sale in the UK from December and priced from just £25,000, has been revealed with efficiency and performance figures that outshine several key rivals’.

Launched in China in 2018 and confirmed for a European roll-out at the Munich motor show in September, the Cat is the newest model from the nascent, electric-only Ora subbrand formed by automotive giant Great Wall Motors (GWM).

Five years after pulling the uncompetitive Steed pick-up from sale in the UK, GWM is re-entering the market with models from Ora and the more premium-oriented Wey marque, whose plug-in hybrid Coffee 01 SUV is due to arrive in Europe next year.

What most obviously marks the Cat out from other EVs at this price point is its maximum range of 261 miles, which is more than double that of the similarly priced Mazda MX-30 and slightly more than even the top-rung Renault Zoe. That maximum figure is achieved by a Cat featuring a 63kWh (gross) battery pack.

That model is expected to cost from around £30,000, although a 48kWh, 209-mile model will also be offered.