The war of the gods continues duties from China e European Union: Beijing has blocked the production of B10 electric SUV born from the collaboration between Stellar and the Chinese partner Leap motor. The new model was supposed to be produced at the Tychy plant in the south of Poland.
The government led by Xi Jinping has prohibited joint ventures between Chinese companies and European companies operating in one of the states that voted in favor of imposing duties on car imports from China.
Stellantis’ plans are upended
The move has upset Stellantis’ plans, which will now be forced to move production in one of those states that voted against the introduction of tariffs, as the agency revealed Reuters citing two sources.
This is no small problem, since Poland is traditionally chosen for the low labor costs. There are primarily two countries in the running: la Germania with the Eisenach plant (where Opel models are assembled today) and the Slovakia with the Trnava plant. Both countries are strong builders. But tipping the scales in favor of the Slovenians would be the high cost of German labor, as well as higher energy prices. Nothing it still was though decided.
In Tychy, Poland, assembly of the T03 electric small car with Chinese parts had already begun a few months ago. At the moment there is no news on a possible revision of the production of the T03.
For Stellantis this is yet another tough nut to crack, after the collapse of sales in the US and European markets and after the strikes in Italy.
The B10 electric SUV
B10 by Stellantis-Leapmotor was presented at the 2024 Paris Motor Show last October. This is the Chinese brand’s first global electric SUV designed for the European and international markets. The B10 is a C-segment (mid-size) car that aims to combine design, advanced technology and sustainability.
The Leap 3.5 platform is designed to support artificial intelligence and level 2 autonomous driving. Among the features, a digital infotainment system with large screen. The manufacturers also focused on aesthetics by presenting blue, purple and green bodies and thus dismantling the classic idea of the SUV being “obligatorily” white, gray or black.
The tariff war between China and the EU
Beijing’s move is only the latest phase of the tariff war between China and the European Union. It all started with an investigation by the EU Commission carried out following suspicions of large and illegal state aid to the automotive sector. The EU has thus established the introduction of tariffs of up to 45% on electric vehicles coming from China.
After weeks of threats, Beijing took action by counterattacking in turn with tariffs on a series of European products including alcohol, luxury cars and agri-food.
Subsequently, the Chinese manufacturer Saic Motor announced that it intended to report Brussels to the EU Court of Justice.
And that’s not all: the Chinese government declared that it had presented alegal action against the EU at theOmcWorld Trade Organization.
