Geely, which owns Volvo Cars and 9.7% of Daimler AG, will also work with other rocket companies in Guangzhou, the government said.

The company was not immediately available for comment after usual business hours.

Geely is building low-orbit satellites to meet demand for high-speed connectivity capabilities that can deliver fast software updates. From around 2025, Geely's cars will have more functions to connect to the satellites.

(Reporting by Yilei Sun and Tony Munroe; Editing by Edmund Blair)