Chinese NEV makers vie for greater market share

People visit the 20th Guangzhou International Automobile Exhibition at the China Import and Export Fair Complex in Guangzhou, south China's Guangdong Province, Dec. 30, 2022. (Xinhua/Lu Hanxin)

GUANGZHOU, Jan. 9 (Xinhua) -- At the just-concluded 20th Guangzhou International Automobile Exhibition, emulative Chinese carmakers displayed their latest development in new energy vehicle (NEV), showing their ambition and confidence to vie for the electric and intelligent vehicle market.

GAC Aion, an NEV subsidiary of Guangzhou Automobile Group Co., Ltd. (GAC Group), unveiled its latest coupe Hyper GT, a highlight at the show owing to its design, intelligent driving control and cabin enjoyment.

Gu Huinan, general manager of the company, said GAC Aion will launch at least two new models every year, and accelerate its internationalization strategy to become a world-class brand in the high-end intelligent electric vehicle market.

GAC Aion sold some 271,000 vehicles in 2022, up 126 percent from the previous year. According to Gu, the brand will strive to sell more than 1.5 million vehicles by 2030.

"At present, the automobile industry is undergoing profound changes unseen in a century. Technological innovation featuring 5G, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence has become the most important variable affecting the entire industry," said Zeng Qinghong, chairman of GAC Group, adding that the automobile industry is gradually showing a low-carbon and intelligent development trend.

The automobile industry, which consists of complex supply chains, is regarded as a symbol of a country's top-level manufacturing. Many industry insiders at the auto exhibition believe that the NEV sector is becoming a new "business card" for China's advanced manufacturing and will usher in a prosperous future with the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions likely to help spur consumer spending and boost supply chains.

Leading NEV manufacturers in China reported a robust sales increase in 2022 thanks to fast market expansion and policy incentives. BYD, China's largest NEV manufacturer, said its NEV sales jumped 208.64 percent year on year to over 1.86 million units in 2022.

BYD has launched a series of technologies, such as Blade battery, DM-i and DM-p hybrid systems, the e-Platform 3.0, and the CTB battery body integration technology, to promote the transformation of the global NEV industry and realize a leapfrog development, sources with the company told Xinhua at the show.

From January to November 2022, the country's NEV sales exceeded 6.06 million units, with the market share of such vehicles hitting 25 percent, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

The rapidly expanding NEV market has also attracted investors at the auto show. Thirty-four key projects, with a total investment of 33.2 billion yuan (about 4.89 billion U.S. dollars), were signed during an event at the exhibition, covering sectors such as automobile R&D, design, materials, and NEV charging.

According to the Central Economic Work Conference held in mid-December, China will continue to support NEV purchases in a bid to expand domestic demand in 2023.

The automobile manufacturers' association forecast that China's NEV sales for 2023 would grow 35 percent year on year to 9 million units, compared to an estimated 6.7 million units for 2022.