The new automobile manufacturing force has long coveted the European market. Recently, some media reported that Weilai is preparing to build a marine division, with the internal code tentatively named "Kelpolo Plan", and plans to sell 7,000 ES8s and ES6s in Europe within two years. Li Bin, founder and chairman of Weilai, revealed that he will enter some countries that welcome electric vehicles more in the second half of next year. In terms of time, it coincides with the "Kelpolo Plan".
In late September, Aichi Automobile and Xpeng Automobile both announced that their products were exported to Europe. Why do the new forces of building cars concentrate on entering overseas markets at this time? Can they break into a world in the European market? How to deal with strong rivals such as Tesla, Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz?
◆? The new forces that build cars have long had a "sea plan"
Back to five months ago, Weilai Automobile has revealed its plan to enter overseas markets. Qin, co-founder and president of Weilai Automobile, revealed two important messages in an interview with the media: First, Weilai needs to double its sales at least if it wants to make a profit. At that time, Weilai delivered 3,436 new cars that month. Second, Weilai will take the globalization route, and the market outside China has important strategic significance.
"Europe is one of the potential markets that we have been seriously considering." Qin bluntly said that Weilai originally planned to sell in markets outside China this year, but the plan ran aground due to the epidemic. Of course, the barriers in the European market are also high. Based on various considerations, Weilai put the sea time in one or two years.
According to the latest news, Weilai Automobile has set up an export business team. While exporting ES8 and ES6 models, it is equipped with services including worry-free service and one-button startup. It is worth mentioning that Weilai's first NIO overseas? House will land in Copenhagen, Denmark. Weilai's plan to go to sea is speeding up.
On the other hand, Aichi Automobile is a pioneer in opening up overseas markets. Even if the Geneva Motor Show was cancelled in March this year, the European version of Aichi U5 failed to appear as scheduled. Fu Qiang, president of Aichi Automobile, still went to Europe, shouting the slogan "Europe, here we come", with enthusiasm, regret and disappointment.
In May this year, the first batch of 500 European Aichi U5 vehicles successfully landed in Corsica, France, and put into local travel rental service. On September 23rd, the second European version of Aichi U5 was sent to Europe again. So far, Aichi has exported 700 electric vehicles to the European market.
Such a good result also benefited from the advance layout of Aichi Automobile. 20 18 10, Aichi Automobile officially announced its overseas strategy in Germany. 2065438+In September, 2009, Aichi U5 obtained the certificate of WVTA of the European Union, which means that it has obtained the sales qualification in the European market. In 2020, Aichi Auto Europe official website will also be launched, allowing users to book cars online and choose the time of car use.
"Car companies going out to sea is not a unique strategy for new forces to build cars. In the short term, the automobile is still a product with stronger attributes than the consumer goods industry, and the scale effect is still the key factor for any automobile company to win. " Shi Shuai, executive director of roland berger, told car home that in Europe, where traditional industries are developed, Internet economy and user management concepts are relatively lacking, which is also the reason why the new car-making forces enter overseas markets, hoping to gain sales by educating users.
◆? China and Europe are neck and neck in the electric vehicle market.
As Shi Shuai said, the scale effect is very important for building new forces. Although China is still the main growth force of global automobile sales, the competition is becoming increasingly fierce. Therefore, based on the judgment of the growth potential of the European electric vehicle market, the new car-making forces have regarded Europe as the second battlefield outside China.
Felix Cunat, head of global automobile business of PricewaterhouseCoopers, predicts that in the next few years, China and Europe will compete neck and neck in electric vehicles, and the final outcome will depend on the promotion of policies, the improvement of charging infrastructure and the quality and availability of electric vehicles. This judgment is also supported by data. PricewaterhouseCoopers and its strategic consulting subsidiary Strategy &; A survey shows that in the first quarter of this year, the total number of registered pure electric vehicles in five European countries has surpassed that in China.
According to another data, during the period of 1- 10 in 2020, the cumulative sales volume of electric vehicles in Europe reached 920,000, up by 1 15% year-on-year. According to such a strong growth trend, the industry predicts that the number of electric vehicles in Europe will exceed1.2000, with a year-on-year increase of over 1.20%, making it the largest new energy vehicle market in the world.
Such rapid growth has a lot to do with the reversal of carbon emission policy. European governments and car companies are working together to promote the electrification process. According to the requirements of EU carbon emission assessment, the average carbon emission of 95% vehicles will be reduced to 95g/km in 2020, and the vehicles exceeding 1g will be fined 95 euros each. By 202 1, all vehicles have reached the standard. According to such emission requirements, it can be predicted that the electrification rate in Europe will reach about 10% in 20021year, and the sales of electric vehicles will reach about10.6 million.
On the one hand, there are rigid requirements for emissions, on the other hand, there are generous subsidies. In the German market, the subsidy for pure electric bicycles under 40,000 euros was raised to 9,000 euros (originally 6,000 euros/vehicle), and the subsidy for plug-in hybrid bicycles was raised to 6,750 euros (originally 4,500 euros/vehicle), and the subsidy was postponed until 2025. France raised the subsidy budget of 202 1 to 400 million euros, and explicitly extended the subsidy until 2022.
Zheng Yun, senior global partner of roland berger and vice president of Greater China, told car home that 24 of the 27 EU countries have introduced incentive policies for new energy vehicles. Among them, 12 countries adopt dual incentive policies of subsidies and tax incentives, while other countries give tax relief.
Zeng Yuqun, Chairman of Contemporary Ampere Technology Co., Ltd., predicted that the sales of electric vehicles in Europe will surpass that in China in 2020. It is the general trend that the electric vehicle market in China and Europe keeps pace. This is a new force to build cars full of market opportunities, behind the status of "one brother" in the Central European market.
Shi Shuai summarized several driving factors for new forces to enter overseas markets. First, global sales growth; Second, brand building; Third, supply chain coordination; Fourth, the Tesla effect. "It is easier to play from top to bottom, and it is more difficult to play from bottom to top. The new forces of making cars hope to enhance the overall brand power and feed back domestic sales through success in overseas markets. "
◆? "Hand-to-hand combat" with local veterans' troops
Opportunity does not mean the end, but the beginning of everything. It can be predicted that Weilai Automobile, which is about to enter the European market on 202 1, will not be smooth sailing. Qin bluntly said that Europe is a more mature market and consumers are very loyal to the brand. Weilai needs consumers to improve brand awareness, and the growth of pure electric vehicles also takes time.
On the other hand, Tesla and local European brands are eyeing. Under the background of accelerating the electrification process in the European market, the European market is full of "experts". The data shows that Tesla1-the only model in September? 3 One model achieved sales of 57,000 vehicles, ranking second in market share. Volkswagen ID. After being delivered in Europe at the end of March, it surpassed Model in some European countries. 3. The electrification transformation has achieved remarkable results.
After 202 1 year, the European electric vehicle market will also be a year of fierce competition. Tesla's factory in Berlin, Germany will be completed and put into operation in July next year, when the tariff cost advantage will be clearly reflected. In the traditional German car companies, whether Volkswagen, Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, PSA, Renault and other companies, a large number of electric vehicle products will be listed after 20021,covering almost all market segments.
According to the analysis of insiders, the price of electric vehicles exported from China to Europe has filled the gap in the entry-level and mid-to-high-end markets. At the same time, the relatively advanced intelligent experience has given China electric vehicles a certain advantage in the market.
Fu Qiang once investigated the European electric vehicle market and found that there are two major pain points in the consumption of new energy vehicles in Europe. First, traditional electric vehicles are mainly small cars, but this can not meet the needs of many families in some satellite cities; The second is Tesla mode? 3 and Audi e-tron represent high-end electric vehicles with more than 50,000 euros, which do not meet the subsidy requirements.
Shi Shuai pointed out that from the hardware point of view, the products of the new car-making force must meet the OTA certification (SUMS) and the automobile network safety certification (CSMS) implemented in 202 1 Europe, otherwise they cannot obtain the type certification. From the aspect of software, consumers' demand for brand value, vehicle preference, scene preference and willingness to pay for functions in European market is quite different from that in China.
"In the process of going out to sea, the new forces of building cars need to configure product pedigree and functions according to local conditions. On the other hand, in the field of sales and services, such as power exchange mode, charging pile/station construction, etc., enterprises need to make entry decisions according to the actual situation of each country. " Shi Shuai said.
Of course, going overseas may also face the problem of "acclimatization". Shi Shuai believes that localization adaptation can be divided into three levels: compliance level, user demand and localization supply chain. Intelligent networking, new energy, autonomous driving, etc. Are global innovation trends. Shi Shuai said that the key to the success of the new car-making forces lies in localization. For example, consumers in China are accustomed to usage scenarios such as WeChat and Alipay, and will ask for payment scenarios to "get on the bus", while European users are more concerned about the security of usage scenarios.
◆? Editor's summary:
Tesla's success at the global level has set off a wave of new energy revolution. From the perspective of brand competition, the automobile industry is accelerating reshuffle and innovation in the future, and the head aggregation effect will continue to increase. It is imperative for new forces to accelerate the pace of global expansion, so as to prevent Tesla from gaining greater first-Mover advantage and resource advantage too quickly. (Text/car home? Li Zhengguang)