A Chinese auto company said on Sunday it had adopted Tai Shan, a much-loved panda that has just arrived in China from its birthplace in the United States, in a US$60,000 (S$85,308) corporate deal.

The animal arrived in southwestern Sichuan province on Friday from Washington – where its departure nearly five years after it was born at the National Zoo drew tears from the crowds – to join China’s panda-breeding programme.

Cao Guodong, deputy general manager of the Sichuan Auto Industry Group, said the firm, which makes hybrid cars, had decided to adopt Tai Shan to initiate an ‘environmental protection philosophy’ for the company. He denied the deal was for advertising purposes, but added the company would organise activities centered around Tai Shan at its businesses around China at key moments, such as the panda’s birthday.

‘Four hundred thousand yuan (60,000 dollars) is the basic fee, but that doesn’t include money we might donate in the future,’ he said.

Hen Yi, a spokesman for the Wolong panda base in Sichuan’s Bifengxia, where Tai Shan is currently staying, told AFP the panda would not be disrupted by the deal and would never be moved from its feeding centre.

Meanwhile, unaware of the excitement, Tai Shan, a male panda, was adapting well to life at the centre, but still had to get accustomed to its new Chinese handler, Mr Hen said. ‘He doesn’t understand either Chinese or English, but he needs to get familiar with the voice of his new handler,’ he said.

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