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China’s electric vehicle (EV) company Zeekr is committed to a broad expansion throughout the EU despite tariffs slowing its pace, the company’s top European executive has told Euronews.
Lothar Schubert, the acting CEO of Zeekr Europe — which is the EV arm of Geely Holdings, one of the Chinese companies targeted by EU tariffs last year — told Euronews’ Europe Today the brand was “committed” to Europe.
Last October the EU slapped steep duties on China-made electric vehicles (EVs) to offset the effects of Chinese state subsidies, including tax reductions and preferential lending, which Brussels says unfairly undercut European competitors.
Decrying the measure as a “naked act of protectionism”, Beijing responded with probes into EU-made brandy, pork and dairy, which Brussels then denounced as unfair and unjustified.
As expected, Thursday’s one-day EU-China summit in Beijing failed to deliver progress on these open fronts.
Talks on a potential minimum pricing arrangement in order to remove the tariffs have been underway since April. Asked whether such an arrangement would be acceptable to a company like Zeekr, Schubert simply said they were an advocate of “free trade.”
He explained that Zeekr had launched its car brand in Europe two years ago, beginning in the Nordic markets, before continuing in Belgium, Switzerland and several others.
“And we’re in the middle of the expansion plans at the moment,” he said flagging the company’s plans to grow further starting with Germany, the UK, “and also going forward with France, Italy and Spain.”
“At the moment we are preparing. So in the next twelve to twenty-four months, our plans are to be live,” he said.
Schubert said “of course we are opposing against the tariffs”, adding they negatively impact consumers.
“The tariffs are hindering us moving in that speed forward since last year,” he explained.
But he added that that company has “done its homework”, and is “very much convinced that our sustainable go-to-market approach is now prepared”.
“So our commitment is to expand further. Our commitment is to deliver high-level premium products to our consumers in Europe. And independently from the tariffs, our expansion plans goes further.”
Pressed about EU concerns over the subsidies Beijing pumps into its domestic companies, he said the company had to “gain the trust of the consumers.”
“And that is where our main work is on now, launching the markets, creating a brand experience and having a clear relationship to the consumers in Europe, convincing with the products and also attractive pricing and price value proposition where we can be successful.”
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