Chinese battery electric vehicle (BEV) maker Xpeng has confirmed that it is considering localizing vehicle production in Europe to offset the impact of import tariffs imposed by the European Union (EU) on Chinese BEVs, Bloomberg reports.
The automaker's founder and CEO, He Xiaopeng, said management is in the early stages of searching for a production site in Europe. He joins a growing list of Chinese automakers, including BYD Auto, Chery Automobile and Geely Automobile's SiCar, that are planning to localize production in the region after the European Commission confirmed earlier this month that it would impose tariffs of up to 38% on imports of BEVs from China.
He Xiaopeng suggested the company's globalization strategy will not be affected by the EU's import tariff hike, but acknowledged that “profits from European countries will decline as a result of the tariff hike.” The company delivered 52,000 vehicles worldwide in the first half of 2024, up 26% from the previous year.
Canada also confirmed this week that it would impose 100% import tariffs on Chinese-made BEVs, following in the footsteps of the United States, which imposed similar tariffs in April.
He said Xiaopeng also plans to build a large data center in Europe to support the intelligent driving features of its cars. The company has a strategic partnership with Volkswagen and employs “hundreds” of staff from the German automaker at its headquarters in Guangzhou.
“Xpeng considers car production in Europe” was originally created and published by Just Auto, a brand owned by GlobalData.
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