As the ro-ro ship "Mediterranean" slowly docked at the port, 2,000 new energy vehicles began to enter the waiting position, lined up in a long queue, ready to go. Due to the traditional peak sales season in Europe before Christmas, half of the cars will be shipped to the European market before November.

　　Since the beginning of this year, domestic new energy vehicle companies have entered overseas markets on a large scale. In May, NIO released the "Norway Strategy" and officially entered the European market. In the same month, BYD announced that it cooperated with the Norwegian distributor RSA to launch the Tang EV model equipped with lithium iron phosphate blade batteries, as the first stop for BYD passenger cars to go overseas in Europe.

　　As the overlord of China's new energy vehicle industry and the leader of new forces, BYD and NIO's high-profile overseas trips to Europe can be regarded as a landmark event for China's new energy to go overseas.

　　Before them, domestic car companies such as Great Wall Motor, Dongfeng Lantu, SAIC MG, Chase, Wuling, Hongqi, Xiaopeng, Nezha, AIWAYS, WM Motor have also arrived all over the world to develop overseas markets for their brands .

　　It is worth mentioning that, just today (October 17), the 2022 Paris Auto Show, one of the world's top five auto shows, was reopened, and Great Wall Motors made appearances with models such as the Ora Cat, the Lightning Cat and the Wei brand PHEV. Among them, the ORA cat officially announced the European launch at the auto show.

　　It can be seen that China's new energy vehicles are heading to the world step by step.

　　01

　　Can flowers inside the wall be fragrant outside the wall?

　　Data show that in 2020, China's new energy vehicle exports will only be 70,000, accounting for 7% of total vehicle exports. By 2021, China's new energy vehicle exports will increase to 310,000 units, a year-on-year increase of 304.6%.

　　Entering 2022, according to data from the China Automobile Association, from January to August 2022, my country's total export of new energy vehicles was 340,000, a year-on-year increase of 97.4%.

　　In 2021, China's new energy vehicle exports will account for one-third of the world's total, making it the world's largest exporter of new energy vehicles. This year, this market share figure will undoubtedly continue to increase.

　　What is the reason for the exponential increase in exports?

　　On the one hand, it stems from the improvement of the technical strength of my country's new energy vehicles. Whether it is product appearance, interior decoration, cruising range, environmental adaptability, or vehicle performance, quality, safety, and intelligent applications, my country's new energy vehicles are currently at the international leading level.

　　Dare to export to Germany, Japan and other auto developed countries and strong auto industry countries, not only need the confidence of the brand, but also need the support of product strength.

　　At the same time, the external environment also provides opportunities for Chinese brands to develop overseas markets. In order to achieve the goal of "carbon reduction", in recent years, many governments around the world have successively announced carbon emission targets and increased subsidies for new energy vehicles.

　　For example, Norway has launched a number of policies to support electrification transformation, including exempting electric vehicles from 25% value-added tax, import duties, and road maintenance taxes; Germany has extended new energy subsidies to 2025, further activating new energy vehicle market.

　　Internal and external factors have jointly promoted Chinese new energy vehicle companies to blossom in overseas markets. BYD alone has its new energy vehicle footprint in more than 70 countries and regions around the world and more than 400 cities.

　　While China's new energy vehicles are gradually occupying the world, Europe, the world's second largest new energy vehicle market, is also feeling the crisis.

　　The European Union needs to provide more regulatory incentives to encourage local automakers to expand local production of pure electric vehicles or face being snatched up by Chinese rivals, according to a study by Transport & Environment (T&E) in Europe. market share risk.

　　The report "From boom to brake: Has the transition to electric vehicles stalled?" released by T&E shows that the growth rate of electric vehicle sales in the EU has slowed down. In the first half of 2022, the market share of pure electric vehicles in Europe was 11%, and based on past growth trends, this proportion should reach 13%.

　　Meanwhile, Chinese automakers such as BYD and Great Wall Motors are seeking to gain a foothold in the European Union, where their electric vehicles recently received high safety ratings. T&E expects Chinese-made EVs to account for 5% of EU EV sales in the first half of 2022, with a market share that could reach 18% by 2025.

　　If this prediction can be realized as scheduled, China's new energy vehicles will completely conquer the European market in the near future.

　　02

　　It is not a smooth journey for new energy vehicles to "go to sea".

　　From past experience, it is not easy for cars to "go overseas", especially to developed countries in Europe and America. The sea has both scenery and wind and waves.

　　In December 2020, Xpeng Motors' first batch of 100 Xpeng G3s exported to the Norwegian market have been delivered to users in 28 cities and towns in Norway. In November 2021, Xiaopeng Motors Vice Chairman and President Gu Hongdi announced with a high profile that half of the company's future deliveries will come from China and half from overseas.

　　But half a year later, He Liyang, the vice president of Xiaopeng Motors in charge of overseas business, Zhang Yibo, deputy general manager of marketing in charge of overseas business, and Zhang Chuanjin, the former general manager of the North District, have left.

　　In addition, in June this year, some media quoted the statistics of the data website Cleantechnica, showing that Xpeng Motors only sold 1,006 vehicles in Norway in two years.

　　In addition to Xiaopeng, NIO, which opened its first overseas NIO House in the Norwegian capital on National Day in 2021, has a very poor sales performance. As of September this year, NIO has sold only 900 vehicles in the Norwegian market; it mainly focuses on overseas markets, in 2020 Aiways, which began to be exported in May, has exported only 1,042 units from January to June this year.

　　With the help of the wave of electrification, the curtain of Chinese car companies is slowly opening, but to really open up the market, there are not many challenges left for them.

　　There are some car companies that sell well overseas. Although they are worthy of recognition in terms of momentum, they still need to look at their performance to measure the effect of going overseas. In terms of making money, car companies going overseas are still at the stage of cautious optimism.

　　According to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, the average unit price of new energy vehicles exported by Chinese brands to Europe in 2021 will be 30,000 US dollars (about 200,200 yuan). According to data released by the General Administration of Customs, from January to August this year, my country exported vehicles The unit price of the product is RMB 113,800.

　　Although new energy vehicles are a high-tech industry, the compromises in price strategy have determined that car companies have made substantial profits for the sake of staking the market, and the lack of control over pricing channels has left the pricing power sideways.

　　Different from general commodities, automotive products have high value, complex usage scenarios, and long life cycles. While emphasizing performance, price, and quality, they must also be guaranteed by a sound sales channel and after-sales service system. Especially for new energy vehicles, the construction and improvement of the energy supplement system is particularly important. If there is no strong confidence and systematic planning, it is very likely to capsize.

　　Whether those car companies that have already hit the road can finally gain a foothold is still unknown, but the time and capital costs involved are an expense that cannot be ignored. For more independent brands, the growth opportunities from overseas markets cannot be missed, but how to overcome the peaks of the old and new is still unknown.