DiDi is a transportation company which operates taxi hailing and delivery services, as well as providing car rentals.

It already has 550 million users and the joint venture aims to "develop standalone, reliable and high-quality charging hubs to provide EV charging services to DiDi's drivers and the public".

Tufan Erginbilgic, BP's Downstream chief executive, said: "As the world's largest EV market, China offers extraordinary opportunities to develop innovative new businesses at scale and we see this as the perfect partnership for such a fast-evolving environment.

"The lessons we learn here will help us further expand BP's advanced mobility business worldwide, helping drive the energy transition and develop solutions for a low carbon world."

The venture aims to expand rapidly, with an ambition to quickly become the leading EV charging provider in China, it said.

Cheng Wei, chairman and chief executive of DiDi, said: "We look forward to combining our strengths to create a robust EV charging network for China."