BEIJING, July 31 (Reuters) - China's industry ministry said

on Friday it had conducted inspections at Chery, Nio

and JAC to assess the automakers' ability

to ensure the safety of intelligent connected vehicles.

The inspections - carried out from July 30 to 31 - also

examined the companies' design, development and manufacturing

capabilities, their ability to maintain production consistency,

and whether they continued to meet regulatory production-access

requirements.

The ministry said it had randomly selected vehicle samples

and power batteries for testing by third-party institutions for

compliance with national standards, but did not disclose any

findings from the inspections.

The move follows similar inspections conducted by the

ministry last week at GAC Aion and Xpeng ( XPEV ).

(Reporting by Beijing newsroom; Editing by Emelia

Sithole-Matarise)