Pieter KlokJanuary 4, 2024, 9:54 PM
The European car industry has to do a lot of catching up to keep up with the Chinese e-car. Help from the European governments seems inevitable.
BYD has dethroned Tesla. In the last quarter of 2023, the Chinese car manufacturer sold more electric cars than the American company that virtually invented the electric car. It once again shows that China is playing a leading role in the energy transition. The country previously became a leader in the production of solar panels.
China has a big lead. Primarily because it has all the raw materials needed for battery production, but also because of low wages and generous government support. More than 60 percent of car batteries now come from China.
The newspaper’s position is expressed in the Volkskrant Commentary. It is the result of a discussion between the commentators and the editor-in-chief.
The European car industry needs to catch up enormously. The German car manufacturers, which are the beating heart of the European industry, are not changing nearly fast enough. Because car makers here still make a lot of money with petrol cars, much of their attention continues to be focused on that. This by definition puts them at a disadvantage compared to manufacturers who can focus entirely on electric cars.
Of course, the European car brands – especially the German ones – still have a strong quality image and good designers, but technically they are lagging behind. The production of the electric car is a completely different trick than designing the perfect petrol or diesel engine. The fuel engine is a delicate interplay of parts in which continuous improvement is possible, and the German car manufacturers have perfected this. The electric car is really only about the battery – it is not without reason that BYD, originally a battery manufacturer, has taken over the lead.
European car manufacturers also do not have to count on much government support. While the Biden administration in the US has erected high tariff barriers to discourage the import of Chinese electric cars, the EU does not dare to do so for fear that China will erect tariff barriers on the import of European gasoline cars. A company like Volkswagen gets half of its turnover from China.
Government subsidies are also more sensitive in Europe than in the US, where Biden has decided to generously support the energy transition. Germany’s plans to subsidize charging stations and battery factories were torpedoed by the courts in November because the Scholz government had improperly stretched the budget space.
For example, the European market is in danger of being flooded by Chinese electric cars and the European car industry is in danger of playing a supporting role after 2035, when only electric cars are allowed to be sold.
If car manufacturers fail to introduce a competitive alternative to the market, the European economy will be hit hard and many jobs will be lost; Now, according to the trade association, 7 percent of all Europeans work directly or indirectly in the automotive industry. This will undermine support for the energy transition. It seems inevitable that European governments will come to the aid of car manufacturers in one way or another, otherwise they will hardly be able to win the battle against the American and Chinese car manufacturers.
2024-01-04 20:54:48
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