Property, plant and equipment, net

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2018

Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]

Property, Plant and Equipment Disclosure [Text Block]

10. Property, plant and equipment, net

	December 31,		December 31,
	2018		2017
	$		$
Cost
Construction in progress		6,991,889		1,330,643
Furniture, fixtures and office equipment		7,221,527		5,794,983
Leasehold improvement		7,090,162		7,080,409
Machinery and equipment		40,316,428		33,176,416
Motor vehicles		1,508,398		1,498,605
Building		19,166,951		20,169,197
		82,295,355		69,050,253
Less: accumulated depreciation		25,772,178		22,529,477
		56,523,177		46,520,776

The construction in process represented machines under construction or testing as of December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively.

The Company recorded depreciation expenses of $5,823,572 and $5,152,396 for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively.

During the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, deferred government grants of $75,584 and $263,948, respectively, was reduced from the carrying amount of property, plant and equipment.

During the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, the Company recorded $569,120 and $nil of impairment loss of machinery and equipment in the general and administrative expenses, respectively, due to the replacement of the outdated machinery and equipment. The impairment was related to the Ni-MH Batteries and Accessories segment based on the residual value.

The buildings comprising the Huizhou facilities were pledged as collateral for bank loans as of December 31, 2018 and 2017. The net carrying amounts of the buildings were $8,536,246 and $9,224,694 as of December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively.

The buildings located in Longgang, Shenzhen, Guangdong was pledged as collateral for bank loans as of December 31, 2018 and 2017. The net carrying amounts of the buildings were $353,752 and $396,843 as of December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively.