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在线翻译:
szdaily -> Business -> 
Tesla car not a worry for its Chinese rivals
    2020-09-29  08:53    Shenzhen Daily

TESLA Inc.’s plan to build a US$25,000 car within the next three years doesn’t seem to have fazed China’s most-promising electric vehicle (EV) startups, with executives at the Beijing Auto Show saying Elon Musk can bring it on.

“It’s a good thing for us,” WM Motor Co. founder and chief executive officer Freeman Shen said. “We are very happy Tesla came to China because Tesla is just like Apple in the early days, they educate the whole market.”

Just as Apple Inc.’s share in the mobile phone market has been eroded by local players like Xiaomi Corp., Oppo and Huawei Technologies Co., so too will Tesla’s, however over a longer time horizon, Shen said. Tesla’s slice of the “mainstream” electric vehicle market will significantly decrease in five to 10 years, he said.

Xpeng Inc. vice chairman Brian Gu meanwhile described Tesla as a partner, with both EV manufacturers trying to make sure more consumers are attracted by smart, environmentally friendly cars. EVs are “less than 5 percent of the market” so together “we are accelerating that change and conversion,” he said in an interview.

Gu also said Tesla’s plan to expand its output in Shanghai to an annual capacity of 1 million vehicles in the coming years wasn’t of concern. If CEO Musk “achieves 1 million units, that means the market has grown so much faster and bigger than what we anticipated,” Gu said, adding that Xpeng’s mid-range EVs come in around the US$25,000 mark already.

Xpeng, which reported a net loss of US$113 million on revenue of US$142 million for the six months ended June 30, raised US$1.5 billion in an initial share sale in the United States in August. The firm is among a handful of Chinese car startups to tap the market, surfing a wave of investor demand for EV stocks. Li Auto Inc., another Chinese EV company, increased the size of its U.S. IPO in July to raise US$1.3 billion.

Tesla’s presence at the Beijing Auto Show was primarily centered around displaying its China-made Model 3. The Palo Alto, California-based company plans to ship cars made at its Shanghai factory to Europe and other countries in Asia, including Singapore, Australia and New Zealand, as soon as the end of this year or early 2021, sources familiar with the matter said earlier this month.

NIO Inc. chief executive officer William Li, when asked about Tesla’s plans for a US$25,000 car, noted that battery costs have been steadily declining. Batteries currently represent about one-quarter of an EV’s cost because of the expensive metals used.

“We reached a gross margin of 10 percent in the second quarter and it will increase each quarter,” he said. “The overall battery cost decrease will help promote EVs. Our price tag is more than US$60,000 and even in China we have a lot of work to do for this niche market.”

(SD-Agencies)

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