Korean Media: Production Cost is Only Half of Germany's, Volkswagen Accelerates Its "Made in China" Strategy!
On December 23, South Korean media "Global Economy" published an article stating that one of the world's largest automakers, Volkswagen, said that the production cost of electric vehicles developed locally in China is only half of that in Germany.
Volkswagen plans to launch about 30 electric vehicles in China over the next five years and is fully implementing a "localization strategy," covering all aspects including R&D, testing, and production.
According to the Financial Times, Volkswagen announced that the cost of certain electric vehicle models produced locally in China could be reduced by up to 50% compared to the production costs in Germany in 2023.
Factors that reduce costs include the efficiency of the local supply chain, such as lower battery procurement costs, shorter R&D cycles, and lower labor costs.
Volkswagen is currently investing billions of euros in its innovation center in Hefei, Anhui Province, China, focusing on developing cutting-edge electric vehicle platforms, battery systems, and software technology. The center has more than 100 advanced laboratories, and Volkswagen claims that its integrated process from vehicle design to testing has shortened the traditional 50-month development cycle by more than 30%.
Wu Bora, Chief Technology Officer of Volkswagen China, said, "Our integrated system can simultaneously test hardware and software, running the entire vehicle validation process in parallel, thus shortening decision-making time and accelerating technological maturity."
Volkswagen initially positioned its strategy as "Made in China, for China," but has recently expanded its scope to include expanding exports of electric vehicles made in China and applying the technology accumulated in China to global markets.
In fact, Volkswagen is adopting a learning strategy, such as disassembling and analyzing vehicles from leading Chinese electric vehicle company BYD, and investing in Horizon Robotics, a Beijing-based advanced semiconductor and autonomous driving technology company. It is also currently negotiating cooperation with Xpeng Motors.
The Financial Times reported, "Volkswagen plans to achieve technical localization in China, reducing the time required to develop a new electric vehicle model to 16 months, which is a very rare speed for European manufacturers."
Due to declining production efficiency in traditional German factories and reduced demand, Volkswagen also plans to cut 35,000 jobs in Germany by 2030.
At the same time, Volkswagen still maintains a 20% market share in China's internal combustion engine car market, but has not entered the top ten in the pure electric and plug-in hybrid car markets.
Original: toutiao.com/article/1852261899631754/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author.