Consensus needed for China-EU newenergy cooperation
The European Union should avoid trade frictions with China and it is necessary for both sides to seek consensus on new-energy cooperation, according to industry insiders and analysts citing the multibillion-dollar market opportunities and the global climate goals.
The automotive cooperation between China and Germany on green transformation and intelligent connectivity is vitally important, said Hildegard Mueller, president of the German Association of the Automotive Industry. She encourages the two parties to continue to be crucial partners in achieving climate goals.
“I believe that the two markets should be closely linked,” she said, adding that Chinese companies are welcome in Germany. As for the German side, its carmakers have shown interest not only in exporting but also in producing in China, she added.
For European carmakers, including auto giants BMW, MercedesBenz and Volkswagen, China stands out as the largest single market.
In the first quarter, about onethird of BMW’s sales revenue came from China. The country also hosts BMW Group’s largest R&D center outside Germany.
“The innovations we achieve in China allow us to continuously meet the needs of Chinese customers, thereby driving global innovation,” said Oliver Zipse, chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG.
The expanding foothold of Chinese companies on the European continent underscores the strengthening ties between the two sides. In April, China’s Chery Automobile signed a pact with Spain’s auto company Ebro-EV Motors to
produce cars at its first European factory. According to Reuters, this move is expected to help recover some of the 1,600 direct jobs lost when Japanese automaker Nissan shut down a plant in 2021.
Yan Shaohua, an associate research fellow at the Center for China-Europe Relations of Fudan University, said that China’s electric vehicle (EV) makers venturing into European countries have helped boost the development of the local EV industry chain and accelerate the digital and green transitions in these countries.
China and the EU are each other’s second-largest trading partners. Official data showed that their average trade value approached nearly 1.5 million U.S. dollars per minute, while two-way investment exceeded 250 billion dollars.