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DPCA is brewing structural adjustment: China and France may dominate the Citroën and Peugeot brands respectively

DPCA, a joint venture between Stellantis Group and Dongfeng Group, will undergo internal structural adjustments.

Some reports quoted DPCA insiders as saying this about the new structure: "Dongfeng internally called the 'two rooms and one hall' model, that is, DPCA retains as a production base and maintains the existing shareholding ratio; its two major brands, Dongfeng Peugeot is led by the French side, and Dongfeng Citroen is led by the Chinese side." ”

This is another major change news after the sale of the second plant to Dongfeng Honda, in this regard, DPCA said, "negotiations are still in progress, details such as future product planning are still to be finalized, and more details will be announced in the new strategic plan in China released by Stellantis Group on March 1." ”

After the adjustment, Dongfeng Peugeot is controlled by the French side, and the foreign party expands its shares to 75%, Dongfeng Citroen is controlled by the Chinese side, and the Chinese side will expand its shares to 75%, while the original DPCA automobile will be retained as a production base and become a foundry of the two major brands.

In this regard, the relevant person in charge of DPCA motor responded to the outside world: "At present, the two shareholders are still negotiating, and the share ratio of DPCA will not be adjusted, but the internal division of labor may change." ”

Most industry analysts believe that from the perspective of comprehensive relevant responses, the internal structure of DPCA will usher in adjustments, but there is no conclusion at present, obviously, the huge domestic automobile market makes both shareholders still have expectations for DPCA.

According to public information, DPCA was founded on May 18, 1992, headquartered in Wuhan, Hubei Province, as the earliest joint venture car company to enter the Chinese market, DPCA has also launched a well-known "generation of Shenche" such as Fukang.

However, with the intensification of market competition, DPCA, which has a slow iteration of product updates, continued to decline after creating a peak of 704,800 units in 2015, and from 2016 to 2020, it fell by 15.2%, 36.85%, 32.89%, 55.17% and 55.74% respectively.

In September 2019, DPCA released the "Yuan" plan to change the continued downturn in sales and performance, when its first plant was acquired by the government and the second plant was sold as a whole along with the equipment. At present, DPCA only has two production bases left in Wuhan No. 3 Factory and Chengdu No. 4 Factory.

The roof leaks coincided with overnight rain, and the outbreak of the epidemic in early 2020 caused DPCA in Wuhan to be hit hard again, and its annual sales fell to 50,000 units. In October of that year, DPCA released the "Yuan +" plan, with the slogan of "more Chinese products, more accurate marketing, more reliable service, and more efficient operation", and prepared to embark on the road to rejuvenation.

In 2021, with the help of Versailles C5 X, 2021 Tianyi, mid-term revamped Peugeot 4008/5008 and other models, DPCA sold 100,567 units, an increase of 100.07% year-on-year, and completed the sales target on schedule. Among them, Dongfeng Citroen's annual sales increased by 137% year-on-year, and Dongfeng Peugeot's annual sales increased by 74% year-on-year.

2022 is the 30th anniversary of its establishment, and DPCA said it hopes to double from the 2021 base and hit the annual sales target of 200,000 vehicles.

According to the sales data released by Dongfeng Group, in the past January, DPCA has achieved more than 13,000 vehicles, it is understood that there will be a mid-term modification of Citroen Tianyi, Peugeot brand crossover and other new models have been launched during the year, and according to the "Yuan +" plan, DPCA will build and launch 14 new models in 5 years to achieve a comprehensive upgrade of the product matrix.

However, it is not easy to reverse the decline, and what coexists with the performance of the Year of the Tiger is the speed of new product launch that Has always been criticized by DPCA. In the past three years, peugeot and Citroen have only one new model of Versailles, which has greatly reduced the completion of the "Yuan +" plan. Moreover, the slow pace of its electrification field has become one of the hidden dangers.

In addition, in recent years, French shareholders have not shown their concern for the Chinese market. Compared with other joint venture car companies, BBA and "Two Fields" executives have long learned to use Chinese speeches at new car launches, and Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess can even interact with Chinese consumers on domestic social media.

However, with the withdrawal of brands such as Dongfeng Renault and Changan PSA from the Chinese market, the market share of French brands is also being eroded, and in contrast, DPCA Automobile, which is still actively changing to survive, has attracted more attention. Under the pressure of independent brands upwards, mainstream joint venture brands rolling up, and luxury brands exploring downwards, the marginal joint venture brands represented by Shenlong are being further squeezed, and their road to rejuvenation is still obstacles and long.

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