Europe, China and cars. A bomb that, for now, has resulted in the imposition of tariffs on the electric car. The European objective is that Chinese manufacturers invest in Europe if they want to sell their electric cars at the price that pleases them.
Chery thought that Spain would be his gateway to the market of our continent. The European Commission believes that it is not enough.
“It’s not a good model”. The definition is by the Executive Vice President of the Commission for Prosperity and Industrial Strategy, Stéphane Séjourné. The Frenchman expressed in these terms collected by The newspaperwhile ensuring that relations between China and Europe are “in the midst of nowhere.”
What is about the model that Chery has implemented in Barcelona, a factory where, at least for the moment, only cars that previously arrive mounted from China are completed. It is the easiest way to put the label Made in Spain to a product that, in reality, has very little of Spanish.
DKD. Or, what is the same, Direct Knock Down. This is what the way of working is called that Chery employ in Barcelona. In summary, cars arrive in semi -ado containers and the only thing that is done in Spain is to finish marrying the last parts as if they were the four large groups of pieces of a puzzle that, in reality, is made up of thousands of them.
The process is so advanced that, in fact, cars in Barcelona are not even painted. The intention, in the future, is to jump to the CKD (Complete Knock Down), in which the pieces do not arrive welded or painted but do produce entirely in China.
The cars produced under this system are the Ebro that, although rescue the name of a Spanish brand, They are actually entirely Chinese.
“Low quality”. In his statements, Séjourné, has insisted that “a factory on the outskirts of Barcelona in which a car occurs with all Chinese components generates Low quality jobs And it does not suppose any added value for the European industry. “And he emphasizes:” The solution does not go on to maintain tariffs, but neither by a factory in Barcelona in which cars are assembled with all Chinese components. “
Although hard, the words of the vice president of the commission are not new in the car market. In fact, Chery had already received Europe’s notice that, working in this way would not free him from tariffs to his electric cars. At the moment, the Omoda 5 and Jaecoo 7 They continue to arrive from China but as they have combustion engines they are not taxed with tariffs.
The electric omoda 5, however, is punished with a fee that in the case of Chery reaches 21% (which adds to 10% base for all cars from China, electric and non -electric). It is no accident that the company has delayed its incorporation to the Catalan plant without the confirmation of taking out its cars through the doors of the free zone without being punished with tariffs.
“In nobody’s land”. As we said, Séjourné pointed out that negotiations between Europe and China are stopped. In his day, Europe taxed tariffs on Chinese electric cars but left the door open to those who take combustion engines, both pure and plug -in hybrids. This was seen as a hand tended to negotiation.
Not imposing tariffs on this type of cars has allowed Chinese brands to have taken advantage of the entrance door of countries where cheaper cars are bought, such as Spain. In fact, Chery herself with just six cars in the market (distributed between Ebro, Omoda and Jaecoo) They already add more than 19,800 units In the first eight months of the year. And only three of those six cars have been selling the full year.
That open door to a negotiation seemed to consolidate a few months ago. In April it was confirmed that Europe and China seemed willing to reach some kind of agreement between the two countries. The last thing we have known since then have been these last statements.
They are not the only. What Europe wants is that Chinese manufacturers invest in our continent and generate business here. To skip those tariffs, everything indicates that companies have to assemble their cars in our soil but also generate a local industry that generates value through the Component provision.
This way of acting by Chinese manufacturers is not something exclusive that they do in Europe. Byd is used very similarly in Thailand. But European manufacturers are also used in the same way in those markets that are veiled with tariffs, as happens in Algeria. Country that, tired of these practices, has already warned Renault that they will have to invest more money.
Photo | Ebro
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