The Chinese car industry is targeting Europe and, to avoid import duties imposed by the EU, is evaluating new ways to support its growth program. The most striking example, at the moment, comes from Xpeng. The Chinese manufacturer has confirmed that it is looking with interest at Europe, not only as a market to sell its cars. The manufacturer, in fact, intends to build a factory for the production of electric cars in Europe, thus avoiding the additional costs represented by the duties (which the company would amount to 31.3%).
Xpeng aims for Europe
Xpeng’s new strategy, which continues to expand its European range, is not based on simple rumors. The company’s CEO, He Xiaopeng, in fact, confirmed the company’s future projects during an interview with Bloomberg. Xpeng is looking for a site where it can build a factory to produce electric cars directly in Europe. However, this search is still in its initial stages and, probably, preliminary evaluations of the selected sites are still underway.
There is no information regarding the size of the plant and the timing of its construction. Xpeng could also evaluate the construction of a plant in Italy, where, we recall, the Government is working to attract new investments and support the growth of the national automotive sector, which is struggling with a major problem represented by the decline in production. The final choice will be made over the next few months. Xpeng could opt for a site capable of guaranteeing maximum production and logistics efficiency as well as low labor costs, also thanks to the support of local governments.
Even a data center
Xpeng’s expansion program in Europe does not only concern the production of electric cars directly on our continent. The manufacturer, in fact, is also looking to Europe for a new data center. The goal is to create a data management system to improve the autonomous driving systems that will enrich the cars of the future. By building a data center directly in Europe, Xpeng could avoid problems with the management of user data, which would not be saved on a server in China, but will have to comply with strict EU regulations on data processing.
Duties are a problem for China
For Chinese manufacturers, duties are a big problem. The United States and Canada will apply 100% data on cars imported from China, with the aim of protecting the internal market and countering the expansion of Chinese manufacturers. The EU, for now, has adopted a softer position, with a rate that can reach up to 36.3%. In any case, this is a significant percentage that can drastically reduce the competitiveness of Chinese brands.
For this reason, manufacturers like Xpeng, but not only, are evaluating the possibility of producing directly in Europe. This is a potentially very interesting scenario, both for the manufacturers and for the countries that will host the plants and that could register a substantial increase in jobs, also thanks to an important induced effect. We will see what choices Xpeng will make regarding the possible European production plant.
This article is originally published on virgilio.it
