According to Reuters, Chinese automaker Changan Automobile plans to build a factory in Europe to support its future sales in the European market. On July 2, Nic Thomas, head of marketing, sales and service at Changan Automobile’s Europe, told Reuters that it is currently evaluating potential plant locations.
Deep Blue S07; Image source: Deep Blue Automobile
Nic Thomas said at the Deepal S07 electric SUV test drive event outside London, England, that Changan Automobile is committed to taking root in Europe, producing cars for the European market, and is studying European localization production solutions.
Although Nic Thomas did not disclose the specific time frame for Changan Automobile’s European assembly plant, he emphasized: “We are confident that we have achieved our sales target and are now officially entering the planning stage. At the same time, Nic Thomas revealed that Changan Automobile will start selling the Deep Blue S07 in the UK this year, and deliveries are expected to begin in September this year. It is reported that Changan Automobile announced in March this year that the company plans to enter 10 European markets by introducing electric models in 2025.
Automotive industry analyst Felipe Munoz said that Changan Automobile ranked 16th among global automakers with sales of more than 2.2 million units in 2024. Nic Thomas pointed out that Changan Automobile sold 600,000 vehicles in markets outside of China last year, and this year it aims to exceed 1 million vehicles.
Changan Automobile is another Chinese automaker to enter the European market after BYD and Chery. Due to the EU’s interest in ChinaElectric vehicleTariffs have been imposed, and both BYD and Chery have announced plans to localize production in Europe. It is reported that BYD is building an electric vehicle plant in Hungary, while Chery will produce cars in Spain with local joint venture partner Ebro.
In addition, on July 2, Chinese automaker Geely Automobile announced that it will launch a model of its brand Geely in the UK, and the first model to be launched in the UK will be the Geely EX5 electric SUV.
It is worth noting that in early June this year, China’s Ministry of Commerce said that negotiations between China and the EU on setting a minimum price for Chinese-made electric vehicles have “entered the final stage”. It is reported that the price management system will replace the EU’s current tariffs on Chinese-made pure electric vehicles and is expected to alleviate market concerns about the influx of Chinese electric vehicles into Europe.