What’s new: Chinese auto giant Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co. Ltd. won’t give up making fossil-fuel powered vehicles despite a gradual shift toward electric cars, said company chairman Li Shufu.
In a CCTV program aired on Saturday, the billionaire entrepreneur said he is optimistic about the prospects for fossil-fuel cars, as they will remain the preferred choice for most new buyers in the foreseeable future irrespective of the rising popularity of new-energy vehicles (NEVs).
But Geely will also continue to develop new technologies for its fully electric and plug-in hybrid models, Li added.
The background: Li’s remarks come as Geely has scaled back its aggressive plan to electrify its vehicles in the face of rising competition.
In 2015, the company unveiled its “Blue Geely Initiative,” which set a goal for NEVs to account for more than 90% of its total auto sales by 2020. But in that year, only 5.2% were NEVs, according to company data.
In 2021, it revised the plan with a new goal that NEVs will make up over 30% of its total car sales by 2025. Last year, 28.9% of Geely’s car sales were NEVs, according to company data.
In January, Geely was China’s second-largest manufacturer of passenger NEVs by retail sales, shipping 64,000 vehicles. But it lagged far behind market leader BYD Co. Ltd., which sold 207,000 NEVs in the month, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association.
Contact reporter Ding Yi (yiding@caixin.com) and editor Jonathan Breen (jonathanbreen@caixin.com)
Get our weekly free Must-Read newsletter.
