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Themis Qi

China’s SAIC Motor has extended its cooperation with General Motors by 20 years, renewing the joint venture through 2047 amid aggressive competition from home-grown rivals.
SAIC and GM, the largest carmakers in China and the United States, respectively, in terms of sales volume, signed the agreement on Wednesday, building on a partnership that began in 1995 and led to the SAIC-GM joint venture in 1997.
Wang Xiaoqiu, chairman of state-owned SAIC, said both sides should leverage their strengths in technology, branding, global distribution and local resources, opening new avenues for development with a global perspective.
The venture would launch at least 30 electric vehicle (EV) models in China by 2030, with the goal of “joining the major players” in the world’s largest EV market, GM said in a statement.
The renewal comes as sales from SAIC-GM and affiliates slumped from a peak of more than 4 million vehicles in 2017 to about 2.17 million units last year, according to data from SAIC. GM’s global car sales also shrank sharply to about 6.2 million units last year from over 10 million units in 2016.
Even if Chinese cars cannot enter the American market, the Chinese market is large enough that Chinese and US carmakers can continue to cooperate amicably
David Zhang, International Intelligent Vehicle Engineering Association
As of June, domestic brands like BYD and Leapmotor commanded nearly 70 per cent of the home market, thanks to their dominance in EV technologies, according to the China Passenger Car Association.
The extension was seen as necessary, as GM had a global production network and a loyal customer base, while SAIC had access to China’s powerful supply chain, according to David Zhang, general secretary of the Shanghai-based International Intelligent Vehicle Engineering Association.
“The car market is a cutthroat competition, with everyone vying to knock out the other players and be the last one standing,” said Zhang. “If the agreement were to be terminated rashly, both SAIC and GM would suffer significant losses.”
Zhang highlighted GM’s plants and sales channels across the world, which could help ship SAIC-made cars to overseas markets, especially North America, offering a unique edge to the Chinese carmaker amid escalating trade tensions.
Despite shrinking sales, GM-related affiliates still accounted for nearly 45 per cent – or about 1 million units – of SAIC’s new car sales in the first seven months of the year, according to SAIC sales data.
SAIC remained China’s largest carmaker by sales, delivering 2.38 million vehicles between January and July – spanning both petrol and electric models – narrowly ahead of BYD’s 2.2 million units, which were entirely EVs over the same period, according to sales data from SAIC and BYD.
SAIC has also benefited from its ownership of MG, a historic British brand merged into the group in 2007, which has led China-made car sales in Europe for 11 years in a row. Sales exceeded 300,000 units last year, SAIC data showed.
Yet MG was surpassed by BYD in western Europe in the past quarter, according to data from Germany-based consultancy Schmidt Automotive Research, underscoring the aggressive expansion of Chinese EV makers amid weakening demand and squeezed profits at home.
International marques also continued to push into the Chinese market, with Germany’s Volkswagen adopting advanced driving assistance systems developed by Xpeng and France’s Renault setting up a research and development centre in Shanghai.
The partnerships come even as trade barriers escalate, with the latest potential restriction from the US targeting carmakers with more than 15 per cent Chinese ownership.
The only way international carmakers could compete with Chinese carmakers was through collaboration with Chinese suppliers, said Tim Hsiao, head of the Greater China auto and shared mobility research team at Morgan Stanley, in an interview in April.
“Even if Chinese cars cannot enter the American market, the Chinese market is large enough that Chinese and US carmakers can continue to cooperate amicably,” said Zhang.


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Renewed partnership aims to roll out 30 EVs by 2030, pairing China’s supply chain muscle with GM’s global reach and loyal base


Renewed partnership aims to roll out 30 EVs by 2030, pairing China’s supply chain muscle with GM’s global reach and loyal base.


How SAIC’s recharged venture with GM plans to catch up with top EV makers in China

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Renewed partnership aims to roll out 30 EVs by 2030, pairing China’s supply chain muscle with GM’s global reach and loyal base

Renewed partnership aims to roll out 30 EVs by 2030, pairing China’s supply chain muscle with GM’s global reach and loyal base