Chinese carmaker calls on European Commission to hold hearing on EV tariff measures

SHANGHAI, July 5 (Xinhua) -- Chinese carmaker SAIC Motor said Friday it will defend its rights in accordance with the law and formally call on the European Commission to hold a hearing on interim anti-subsidy tariff measures against Chinese electric vehicle (EV) makers.

The announcement came after the European Commission imposed additional tariffs of up to 37.6 percent on Chinese EV makers on Thursday. Compared to the rates pre-disclosed on June 12, several individual duties have been modified slightly lower based on comments submitted by interested parties on the accuracy of the calculations, according to a statement from the commission. It said that a final decision must be taken on definitive duties within four months through a vote by EU member states.

SAIC Motor responded by stating that it will effectively safeguard its "own legitimate rights and interests as well as the interests of its global customers."

It noted that, the European Commission had intruded upon commercially sensitive information during its anti-subsidy investigations, such as obliging the company to provide battery-related chemical formulations, which are beyond the scope of regular investigations.

Furthermore, the European Commission committed mistakes when calculating the subsidies. For instance, it has incorporated subsidies offered to domestic EV buyers when calculating subsidies for cars sold in the EU.

During the course of the investigation, the European Commission ignored some of the facts and arguments submitted by SAIC Motor. Rather, the commission has made adverse presumptions, citing the so-called non-cooperation with the investigation under Article 28 of the basic countervailing regulations.

Also, according to the automaker, the group has invested nearly 150 billion yuan (about 21.04 billion U.S. dollars) in research and development of core technologies over the past decade resulting in over 26,000 active patents, which helps explain SAIC Motor's brisk sales across Europe.

SAIC Motor voiced opposition to the practices of "artificially setting up trade barriers for EVs" and called for a level playing field. Only through open dialogues and cooperation will China and the EU achieve faster synergy in innovation and contribute to the global low-carbon economy, the automaker said.

China's Ministry of Commerce said on Thursday that China hopes the EU will work with it and show sincerity in advancing talks on the EU's anti-subsidy probe into Chinese EVs. It also called for rationality and pragmatism as talks continue.