Car reviews | New Zotye Automobile Bureau Central Bureau

Text | Chen Zixuan, Qin Fanghui

Design | microcosm

Producer | Chen Zixuan

Shenzhen has lifted the lockdown, but the overall situation is not optimistic.

Huang Jihong of Shenzhen Commercial Group has been quarantined in Shanghai for many days. I thought that after arriving in Shanghai from Shenzhen, I could have more time to advance my work, but when he arrived in Shanghai, he encountered a more severe situation.

Shanghai is becoming the world's most focused due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Yongkang is not far from Hangzhou, and many people working in Yongkang are in Hangzhou. In the more than a month after the Spring Festival in 2022, Zotye Automobile, which was once suspended, finally has some signs of revival.

What is more embarrassing is that under the combined effect of multiple unfavorable factors, after the acquisition of Zotye Automobile by Shenzhen Commercial Group, it is slow in progress and difficult to move.

Among them, sometimes the situation is difficult; there are also human causes.

In the first quarter of 2022, the future direction of Zotye Automobile has become a hot spot in the industry. Although it has been a few years since the market has been wide, Zotye is playing a trick in the capital market, and the stock price of ST Zotye has soared one after another.

Of course, compared with the strange fluctuation of stock prices, recently there is another "Zotye" with a rather embarrassing image in the eyes of the world, it is Chongqing Zotye.

On March 24, the assets of Chongqing Zotye Automobile Industry Co., Ltd. such as land use rights, buildings, and turnover materials were auctioned for the second time on the Alibaba Auction Bankruptcy Liquidation platform, and because no one signed up for the bid, it was auctioned again.

According to information, the appraisal price of the relevant assets of Chongqing Zotye was 1.365 billion yuan, and the price was discounted by 20% after the first auction on March 15, and the starting price of the second auction was 1.092 billion yuan, and the auction was still streamed in the case of 187 people setting reminders and 7057 people watching.

Relevant managers said that the above assets will continue to be treated at a 20% discount, and if the third auction is still auctioned, the auction will continue to be auctioned at a 20% discount, and the proceeds will be used to pay off debts. "Chongqing Zotye auction target is a package auction, even if the auction will not be split auction."

This operation is not without precedent, the assets under the name of Chongqing Zotye New Energy Automobile Technology Research Institute Co., Ltd. were sold after 6 auctions, from 7.75 million yuan all the way down to 2.03 million yuan for sale.

A stock price is attracting much attention, an asset is not asked, what is the relationship between Chongqing Zotye and Zotye Automobile?

It is understood that Chongqing Zotye Plant is the production base set up by Zotye Automobile in 2015 in Chongqing Bishan High-tech Zone.

More precisely, Chongqing Zotye and Zotye Automobile belong to the brand licensing relationship.

Chongqing Zotye Automobile Industry Co., Ltd. is not a subsidiary of Zotye Automobile, Chongqing Zotye is the core supplier of one of the subsidiaries of Yongkang Zotye, and Yongkang Zotye is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Zotye Automobile.

Once Zotye Automobile, not only has the dual production qualification of "traditional fuel vehicle + new energy vehicle", but also has laid out production bases in Zhejiang, Hunan, Hubei, Shandong, Chongqing and other places, and its products cover the segments of cars, SUVs, MPVs and new energy vehicles.

Since Zotye Automobile is in a situation of waste waiting to be revitalized in terms of research and development capabilities, manufacturing processes, or model strength, the actual contribution and significance to the future development of new Zotye are not great.

Shenzhen Commercial Group took over Zotye Automobile, mainly to obtain automobile production qualifications and the strategic layout of the new energy automobile industry, and Chongqing Zotye is not a subsidiary of Zotye Automobile, and the acquisition of these assets has no value, so it can only be sold at a large discount.

There was silence for a long time, either because of the lack of high energy, or because of the brewing of terrifying waves.

The merger and acquisition between Zotye Automobile and Shenzhen Commercial Group can be described as a mountain and a river. On October 9, 2021, Jiangsu Shenzhen Commercial was identified as the restructuring investor of Zotye Automobile.

On October 27, Zotye issued an announcement that the 2 billion yuan of restructuring funds have all been in place, and the funds will be used to pay the reorganization costs, pay off debts, and use the advantages of industrial synergy to help Zotye Automobile restore the national sales network as soon as possible.

After obtaining investor support, Zotye Automobile said it would make efforts from many aspects. In the business plan, Zotye Automobile plans to gradually adjust the brand strategy and build a characteristic strategic system for Zotye, Junma and other national automobile brands.

It is understood that Shenzhen Commercial Group is not anxious to restart Zotye Automobile. Only Chairman Huang Jihong has been deep into the front line of the Yongkang factory at least twice. The Shenzhen Commercial Group team stationed in Zotye Automobile has formulated some practical plans.

Among them, the short-term plan is to reorganize its own brands, through the merger of homogeneous models, optimize the product sequence, optimize the cost structure and reorganize the dealer network and other strategies, to concentrate resources, boost sales, long-term plan to build a brand matrix in the form of acquisitions and joint ventures, layout of the high-end new energy vehicle market.

All of this is basically completed by the end of 2021. However, entering 2022, the core work of new Zotye Automobile's product strategy and the promotion of corporate strategic planning are still slow.

At present, most of the production bases under Zotye Automobile are in a state of suspension, and the overall capital chain is still in short supply after paying off debts, facing serious losses and debt crises.

In today's rapidly changing pattern of the new energy automobile industry, time seems to have become the biggest problem plaguing new Zotye Automobile.

On March 25, in the face of investors' concerns, the secretary of the board of directors of Zotye Automobile revealed that the restructuring of Zotye Automobile has been successful, the delisting risk implemented due to the restructuring has been revoked, and the main task this year is to resume work and production of the vehicle business as soon as possible.

Although the resumption of work and production has not yet improved, since the bankruptcy and restructuring of Zotye Automobile, the "scandal" of its acquisition is not a minority.

In February, news broke that Great Wall Motors took over the Linyi plant of Zotye. In mid-March, it was rumored that Tesla was suspected of acquiring Zotye Automobile, and afterwards it was refuted by the parties concerned.

The Linyi factory was later confirmed by the "Auto Product Review" as a false media report, and the cause was only the behavior of the local government of Linyi, which was normal operation and nothing else.

Although many scandals have not followed, the stock price of *ST Zotye has risen all the way in this period of time, setting a record of 27 up and down in 42 trading days, and even being suspended for verification.

At the same time, a real job posting came into view.

At the end of March, Shanghai Junqu Automobile Technology Co., Ltd. issued dozens of recruitment positions, and clarified in the enterprise information introduction that Zotye Automobile (New) is the business entity after the reorganization of the former Zotye Automobile Co., Ltd., and fully enters the new energy vehicle market by introducing strategic partners with electric vehicle research and development experience and mature electric vehicle technology reserves.

It is worth noting that before Junqu Automobile was wholly owned by Zotye Automobile as Sun Company, its legal representative and executive director was Wu Yunfei, who is currently serving as an executive of six companies such as Nanjing Bojun New Energy Vehicle and Huai'an Yueying Automobile, which are inextricably linked to Bojun Automobile and its founder Huang Ximing.

"Auto Review" has previously carried out in-depth reports, about the leader of the new Zotye Automobile, the senior management of shenzhen business group has worked hard, and there is no suitable plan.

Someone close to Huang Jihong once revealed that shenzhen business group once listed Amgen, former chairman of Anhui Jianghuai Automobile, Xu Heyi, former chairman of BAIC Group, Li Feng, former vice president of Kia in South Korea, and Huang Ximing, founder of Bojun Automobile, as key targets.

As of press time, the leader of the new Zotye Automobile is still in a vacant state.

In a sense, the "double heaven of ice and fire" is not very appropriate. Although the situation of Chongqing Zotye is "ice", the future of the new Zotye Automobile is far from being "fire".

In the puzzle of new Zotye Automobile, what can really change all this is neither this Zotye nor Pi Zotye, but the Shenzhen Business Group behind New Zotye Automobile.

If Jiangsu Shenzhen Commercial wants to truly revitalize Xinzhongtai, it is not only a top priority to clarify the positioning of its brand and products, but also to establish a new management team. However, since Shenzhen Commercial Group entered Zotye Automobile, in addition to determining the comprehensive transformation to new energy and independent research and development of models, it has not released more signals that can arouse the trust of the outside world.

2022 will be the last year of subsidies for new energy vehicles. At this time, Tesla and Wei Xiaoli have occupied a dominant position in the market, new forces such as Nezha and Zero Run are also catching up, mainstream traditional joint venture car companies are also stepping up new car launch, Xiaomi, Baidu and other technology companies have entered the game with huge sums of money, and the living environment of emerging new energy vehicle brands is tightening sharply.

The rivers and lakes that used to be have changed their appearance.

Today's new Zhongtai, although it is a veteran, is also like a newcomer, re-entering the jianghu. Start with the naming of new products and start from scratch.

According to the news from Yongkang, the new Zotye Automobile is still in a state of suspension of work and production. The epidemic, chips, strategy implementation, product planning, etc., are one problem after another to be solved.

If Xinzhongtai hesitates again, even if there is more capital blessing, it will lose the opportunity to make a comeback forever.

Shenzhen Business Group's high-profile determination to enter the field of new energy vehicles is not small, according to informed sources, follow-up in this field, Shenzhen Business Group still has a big hand.

The automobile is a capital-intensive industry, and it is normal for Shenzhen Commercial Group to absorb more funds, but whether it is sincerely saving Zotye Automobile, determined to build a good car for consumers, or only through the "capital game" to circle money for its own interests, it is still unknown.

The rivers and lakes are still there, and the opportunities are still there.

The tide is leisurely.

In the new round of car manufacturing wave, Xinzhongtai is in the bureau, but it is also deeply in the game, can it break the game as soon as possible, can it still catch the last train of high-end new energy? It is still an event worth paying attention to.

Because behind this matter, there are so many people in it.

They are so real, so vivid, they are paying with wisdom and perseverance, with hope and sincerity for the future, with the courage of PUBG, waiting, waiting for the spring to return.