"One day, we will step on the ocean and go on a journey according to our dreams!" Just like Luffy in "One Piece", the new car-making forces have also ushered in their own day of going to sea.
Recently, Lantu Automobile announced its entry into the European market, Xiaopeng Automobile also officially announced the opening of the sea 2.0 model, and Weilai Automobile, which has landed in the Norwegian market, officially launched the first local battery replacement power station. The news of going to sea was frequently reported, and the new forces that crossed the ocean finally began a new round of journeys on the distant European continent.
New forces gather in Europe
Not long ago, Xiaopeng announced that it has reached a strategic cooperation agreement with the leading European distributor Emil Frey NV Group in the Netherlands and the Bilia Group in Sweden, planning to develop its European business through the new retail mode of "direct operation + authorization". Emil Frey, one of Europe's largest automotive retail agencies, will help Roc develop its sales and service network and manage its branded stores across the Netherlands. Bilia's 58 authorized stores and 66 service centers can help Xiaopeng quickly establish a retail and service outlet in Sweden. It is reported that Xiaopeng's first retail experience store has opened in Stockholm, Sweden, on February 11, and will also open a self-operated retail experience store in Westfield Shopping Center near The Hague in the Netherlands in March this year. In addition, Xiaopeng officially said that it has been contacting local sales channels in Denmark to prepare for entering the Danish auto market.
Xiaopeng Automobile Sweden's first direct-operated experience store officially opened Picture source: the company's official website
The so-called "going to sea 2.0" model is compared to Xiaopeng's previous export model to Europe. In fact, Xiaopeng exported 100 Xiaopeng G3s to Norway as early as 2020. According to the 2021 sales data of the Norwegian market, Xiaopeng delivered a total of 438 new cars in the local area last year, of which the G3 sold a total of 406 vehicles, and the P7, which only started delivery in October last year, sold 32 units. While exporting the Norwegian market in batches, Xiaopeng has begun preparations for going to sea in all aspects. In February last year, Xiaopeng has set up its European headquarters in Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, and offices in Denmark, Germany, Norway and Sweden, laying the foundation for future expansion in the European market.
At the same time as Xiaopeng's 2.0 era, it is the foolishness of Lantu Automobile. Born from the old central enterprises of Lantu, "age" is not a big action but not small. Although it was established less than two years ago, and its mass production model was only one Lantu FREE, Lantu still resolutely chose "Sea Expedition". On February 17, Landu announced its entry into the European market, landing its first stop in Norway, and the new car delivery time is expected in the fourth quarter of this year. In June, Lando FREE will make its debut in Norway, and the first Landu overseas flagship store will also open in Oslo, Norway. With the help of China Dongfeng Motor Industry Import & Export Co., Ltd., Lantu will gradually enter many European countries and gradually enrich the overseas product layout.
Landu Automobile signed an agreement with China Dongfeng Motor Industry Import & Export Co., Ltd. Image source: Company's official website
As one of the "big three" of new domestic forces, WEILAI Automobile released its Norwegian strategy in May last year and officially entered the European market. In September, the NIO ES8 was officially delivered in Norway. It is worth mentioning that WEILAI overseas in Europe does not only refer to the entry of products, but from the car to the service, digital experience and lifestyle outside the car, which is a comprehensive copy of the entire operating system. Therefore, Weilai, which has just taken root, has begun to start from the aspects of power exchange network and software services, and continues to grow and develop. A few days ago, NIO officially launched the first second-generation substation in Norway and released the first OTA software update. It is reported that ET7 will also enter the Norwegian market this year and continue to enrich NIO's overseas product line. In addition to the acceleration of the Norwegian market, NIO plans to enter four countries in Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden this year, of which Germany will focus on building NIO's service network this year.
Weilai Center in Oslo, Norway Image source: The company's official website
WM Motors, which saw its sales climb last year, actually started its european journey early. In November 2020, WM signed an intention agreement with Uber to export the WM EX5 to Europe as an optional model for Uber. Unlike other new forces that chose the European market as the first stop of globalization, Nezha Automobile took the lead in entering the ASEAN market with Nezha V. Nezha S, which is expected to be listed this year, will help it open up the European battlefield.
Why Europe became a "fragrant feast"
According to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, by the end of 2021, the global sales of new energy vehicles in the narrow sense reached 6.23 million, an increase of 118% year-on-year, and the trend of globalization of new energy vehicles is becoming clearer. However, the world is so big, why do the new forces have a soft spot for Europe?
In the view of Cui Dongshu, secretary general of the National Passenger Car Market Information Joint Association, this is closely related to the rapidly developing new energy vehicle market in Europe. According to him, the penetration rate of new energy vehicles in the world has shown a rapid upward trend overall, of which the development momentum of China and the European market is strong, the penetration rate of new energy in China is 12%, the penetration rate of major European countries such as Germany, France, and the United Kingdom is higher than that of China, and Norway is 69%. Compared with the European market, Japan, South Korea and the United States are relatively sluggish. Japan's new energy penetration rate is only 1%, while South Korea and the United States are 5% and 4%, respectively. "The european new energy market has high consumer demand, but local products are relatively weak, which gives the domestic new forces a large market space." Cui Dongshu said.
In addition, Europe's strict low-carbon policies and the stimulus policies of new energy vehicles in various countries have provided a fertile ground for the development of new forces in the local area. Last year, the European Union unveiled the "Fit for 55" climate package, which calls for a 55% reduction in emissions from cars and vans by 55% and 50% respectively from 2021 by 2030, achieving "zero-carbon transport". In October of the same year, the British government announced the official implementation of the "net zero strategy" and completely banned the sale of new gasoline and diesel vehicles in 2030. Norway, which became the first stop on most new powers' european journeys, has previously proposed to become the first country in the world to ban the sale of non-electric vehicles by 2025.
In terms of subsidy policies, many European countries have formulated relevant preferential policies. Taking Norway as an example, in response to the electrification transformation, the Norwegian government has introduced measures such as exempting electric vehicles from 25% value-added tax, exemption from import duties and exemption from road maintenance tax. Germany launched the electric vehicle subsidy policy in 2016, and then extended the subsidy policy to the end of 2025, and increased the subsidy amount, the price of pure electric vehicles with a price of less than 40,000 euros increased by 50%, and the price of pure electric vehicle subsidies between 40,000 and 65,000 euros increased by 25%. In addition, the German government has earmarked €2.09 billion for subsidies, which will be paid until the end of 2025 or until the amount is exhausted.
"One of the most embarrassing things about China's auto industry in previous years was the lack of development of overseas markets, which is mainly reflected in three aspects, namely, the total amount is small, passenger car exports are small, and exports to developed countries are small." Fu Yuwu, honorary chairman of the Society of Automotive Engineers of China, said in an interview with the reporter of China Automobile News that with the deepening of intelligence and electrification, the number and structure of mainland automobile exports have changed greatly. According to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, the total export volume of mainland automobiles will exceed 2 million in 2021, of which passenger car exports have increased significantly, an increase of 1.1 times. The export of new energy vehicles also ushered in explosive growth, with annual exports reaching 310,000 units, an increase of 3 times year-on-year. In addition, taking the lead in Europe also shows the improvement of the quality of mainland automobile exports. In Fu Yuwu's view, mainland car companies have changed from exporting to Southeast Asia and the Middle East to taking developed countries in Europe as the first export station, which is a manifestation of technical self-confidence and an inevitable requirement for the automobile industry to become bigger and stronger.
Product quality and service level need to be improved
Gu Hongdi, vice chairman and president of Xiaopeng Motors, said in an earlier interview that as an international car company, Xiaopeng's long-term goal in the next few years is to achieve 50% of its sales from overseas markets. Compared with this grand goal, the sales of new forces in overseas markets today cannot help but make people feel the bone of reality. Although the wave of electrification and intelligence provides a great opportunity for the overseas development of new car-making forces, the road to the peak is bound to be full of thorns.
According to relevant data, the best-selling pure electric model in Europe in 2021 is Tesla Model 3, followed by Renault ZOE, Volkswagen ID.3 and ID.4 are three or four respectively, and the dominance of European veteran car companies in the local market can be seen. Competing with the well-established European car companies on their turf, the difficulty of the new forces is self-evident. Tesla's bestsellers have made the new powers realize that the European market is not indestructible, but it is also a big enemy that these new forces must face.
"The consumption habits of Europe are different from those in China, and the new forces of the car with a length of about 5m may be considered a high-energy model in the European market, and the initial acceptance of consumers may not be high." Cui Dongshu told reporters that domestic consumers often pursue large size and large space. Taking Lantu as an example, the Lantu FREE car is 4905mm long, and the new model exposed a few days ago is even more exposed to be long or more than 5m. However, Europe's environmental requirements are very stringent, coupled with the relatively narrow streets in Europe, so local consumers prefer small cars. Differences in consumption habits are likely to limit the development of new forces in the European market.
In addition, Fu Yuwu stressed that the biggest challenge for new forces to go to sea is reliability. "Whether it is Europe, the United States or other countries, their requirements for automobiles and related regulations are very strict, which requires the reliability of our product quality, quality and price." He said. Failure to meet the regulatory requirements of the export destination country, the inability to guarantee quality clearance, and everything else will be empty talk. At present, the new forces are in accordance with the requirements of European regulations and regulations to carry out product layout. Landu said that the company has now developed and tested corresponding products in accordance with the regulatory requirements, consumer demand and market environment in Norway and other European countries. At the beginning of its development, the Xiaopeng G9 was developed in accordance with the dual certification standards of Chinese and European vehicles to ensure that the quality passed.
It is reported that the current new forces go to sea to adopt three sales and service channels. One is to cooperate with local car rental companies or car subscription service companies to devote itself to the development of the B-end market, such as Aichi and WM; the second is the direct operation model adopted by Weilai, which strives to output the brand concept, management mechanism, business model, lifestyle and other all-round value system while exporting products; Xiaopeng has chosen the sales model of "direct operation + authorization", using direct sales stores to expand brand awareness while using the advantages of local dealer channels.
Fu Yuwu pointed out that if the new forces want to adopt the direct operation method, they will not only face financial and energy challenges, but also become a major obstacle to their familiarity with the local market. In contrast, if a synergy can be formed, it is more conducive to the rapid expansion of new forces in the European market. However, regardless of the channel, the concept of "user-centricity" must be implemented to the end. "Nowadays, mainland car companies are still short boards in user services, and the emphasis on user experience should always be put in mind." Fu Yuwu said.
Text: Zhang Yiwen Editor: Huang Bei Layout: Liu Xiaoye