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BMW and Great Wall Team Up To Possibly Build Electric Mini in China
William Maley posted an article in MINI
BMW has announced today that it has signed a “letter of intent” with Chinese automaker Great Wall Motor on producing electric-versions of the Mini in China. The German automaker in a statement said the next steps will be agreeing on the details of a possible joint venture and clarifying various aspects such as a location for production. The two have been in talks for almost the past two years - Great Wall confirmed the talks back in October. It is expected that the electric Mini will be similar to the concept that debuted last year at the Frankfurt Motor show. BMW also confirmed that production of the electric Mini will also take place at their Oxford, Great Britain plant starting next year. Source: Reuters via Automotive News (Subscmiription Required), BMW Press Release is on Page 2 BMW Group plans joint venture for MINI electric vehicles in China MINI brand set for growth with local partner No plans for additional sales organisation in China Expansion of BMW Brilliance Automotive joint venture Munich. The BMW Group is in advanced discussions to ramp up the global success of its MINI brand through a new joint venture in China. A key element of the brand’s continued strategic development will be local production of future battery-electric MINI vehicles in the world’s largest market for electromobility. To this end, the BMW Group has signed a “letter of intent” with the Chinese manufacturer Great Wall Motor. In addition to production of the first battery electric MINI at the main plant in Oxford starting in 2019, this signals a further clear commitment to the electrified future of the MINI brand. Next steps will be to agree on the details of a possible joint venture and cooperation agreement and clarify aspects such as the choice of production location and concrete investments. The BMW Group has no plans to set up an additional sales organisation in China. The company is firmly committed to continuing the successful cooperation with the established sales structure. Independently of its strategic considerations towards the MINI brand, the BMW Group will further expand its highly successful BMW Brilliance Automotive (BBA) joint venture in China with its partner, Brilliance. In addition to its two automobile production locations, BBA already runs an engine plant, which includes a battery factory for electrified BMW brand vehicles produced locally in Shenyang. This is the first battery factory operated by a premium automobile manufacturer in China. In recent years, BBA has become a cornerstone of the BMW brand’s success in its largest market and serves as a model for the continued development of MINI in China. Around 560,000 BMW brand vehicles were delivered to customers in China in 2017 – more than in the next two largest markets, the US and Germany, combined. In 2017, China was MINI’s fourth-largest market, with around 35,000 units delivered. This underlines the brand’s additional global potential. The successful strategy for expansion of the BMW Group’s global production network obeys a clear rule: Production follows the market. However, expansion of the BMW brand in its largest markets, such as China, has not led to a decrease in production at the company’s German plants. On the contrary, between 2007 and 2017, production in Germany increased by close to a quarter to around 1.15 million vehicles per year. At the same time, almost half of all BMW production now takes place at plants outside Germany. A similar growth strategy could accelerate development of the MINI brand significantly without questioning the BMW Group’s commitment in the UK. The company has made significant investments over the years to step up its involvement in the country. -
BMW has announced today that it has signed a “letter of intent” with Chinese automaker Great Wall Motor on producing electric-versions of the Mini in China. The German automaker in a statement said the next steps will be agreeing on the details of a possible joint venture and clarifying various aspects such as a location for production. The two have been in talks for almost the past two years - Great Wall confirmed the talks back in October. It is expected that the electric Mini will be similar to the concept that debuted last year at the Frankfurt Motor show. BMW also confirmed that production of the electric Mini will also take place at their Oxford, Great Britain plant starting next year. Source: Reuters via Automotive News (Subscmiription Required), BMW Press Release is on Page 2 BMW Group plans joint venture for MINI electric vehicles in China MINI brand set for growth with local partner No plans for additional sales organisation in China Expansion of BMW Brilliance Automotive joint venture Munich. The BMW Group is in advanced discussions to ramp up the global success of its MINI brand through a new joint venture in China. A key element of the brand’s continued strategic development will be local production of future battery-electric MINI vehicles in the world’s largest market for electromobility. To this end, the BMW Group has signed a “letter of intent” with the Chinese manufacturer Great Wall Motor. In addition to production of the first battery electric MINI at the main plant in Oxford starting in 2019, this signals a further clear commitment to the electrified future of the MINI brand. Next steps will be to agree on the details of a possible joint venture and cooperation agreement and clarify aspects such as the choice of production location and concrete investments. The BMW Group has no plans to set up an additional sales organisation in China. The company is firmly committed to continuing the successful cooperation with the established sales structure. Independently of its strategic considerations towards the MINI brand, the BMW Group will further expand its highly successful BMW Brilliance Automotive (BBA) joint venture in China with its partner, Brilliance. In addition to its two automobile production locations, BBA already runs an engine plant, which includes a battery factory for electrified BMW brand vehicles produced locally in Shenyang. This is the first battery factory operated by a premium automobile manufacturer in China. In recent years, BBA has become a cornerstone of the BMW brand’s success in its largest market and serves as a model for the continued development of MINI in China. Around 560,000 BMW brand vehicles were delivered to customers in China in 2017 – more than in the next two largest markets, the US and Germany, combined. In 2017, China was MINI’s fourth-largest market, with around 35,000 units delivered. This underlines the brand’s additional global potential. The successful strategy for expansion of the BMW Group’s global production network obeys a clear rule: Production follows the market. However, expansion of the BMW brand in its largest markets, such as China, has not led to a decrease in production at the company’s German plants. On the contrary, between 2007 and 2017, production in Germany increased by close to a quarter to around 1.15 million vehicles per year. At the same time, almost half of all BMW production now takes place at plants outside Germany. A similar growth strategy could accelerate development of the MINI brand significantly without questioning the BMW Group’s commitment in the UK. The company has made significant investments over the years to step up its involvement in the country. View full article
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Great Wall Has Second Thoughts, Might Not Pursue Buying Jeep
William Maley posted an article in Jeep
Earlier this week, Chinese automaker Great Wall announced its intentions of possibly buying Jeep. It was hoping to make contact with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles about starting negotiations. But just a day later, Great Wall has poured a bucket of cold water on their plans. In a recent filing to the Shanghai stock exchange, Great Wall said there are “big uncertainties” with FCA and isn't sure if it will continue investigating it. The company also stated they have not made any contact with Fiat's board. "The company has not built any relationship with the directors of FCA nor has the company entered into any discussion or signed any agreements with any officer of FCA so far," Great Wall said in the filing. On this news, Great Wall's share price went into freefall on Tuesday that the Shanghai stock exchange put a halt on trading. Analysts find it hard to see FCA selling Jeep alone, as it is the crown jewel in their lineup. There are also the concerns of getting government approval. A recent report from Deutsche Bank AG said Great Wall could run into issues with getting approval from the Chinese government as restrictions have been placed on capital outflow. There is also the political ramifications in the U.S. due to President Donald Trump. Source: Bloomberg, Reuters -
Earlier this week, Chinese automaker Great Wall announced its intentions of possibly buying Jeep. It was hoping to make contact with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles about starting negotiations. But just a day later, Great Wall has poured a bucket of cold water on their plans. In a recent filing to the Shanghai stock exchange, Great Wall said there are “big uncertainties” with FCA and isn't sure if it will continue investigating it. The company also stated they have not made any contact with Fiat's board. "The company has not built any relationship with the directors of FCA nor has the company entered into any discussion or signed any agreements with any officer of FCA so far," Great Wall said in the filing. On this news, Great Wall's share price went into freefall on Tuesday that the Shanghai stock exchange put a halt on trading. Analysts find it hard to see FCA selling Jeep alone, as it is the crown jewel in their lineup. There are also the concerns of getting government approval. A recent report from Deutsche Bank AG said Great Wall could run into issues with getting approval from the Chinese government as restrictions have been placed on capital outflow. There is also the political ramifications in the U.S. due to President Donald Trump. Source: Bloomberg, Reuters View full article
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Ever since the rumor of a Chinese automaker possibly buying Fiat Chrysler Automobiles came to light last week, the various Chinese brands have been saying 'not us'. It seemed no one was interested in taking FCA to the dance, or wanted to admit it out loud. That changed today as Great Wall Motor revealed to Automotive News that it was interested in buying FCA, well part of it. Great Wall President Wang Fengying wrote in an email to Automotive News that the company is intending to buy Jeep and is "connecting with FCA" to possibly begin negotiations. Xu Hui, a spokesman for Great Wall said in a follow-up email that the company "has indirectly expressed interest in Jeep but has not yet made a formal offer or met with FCA's board." A statement from FCA says that it has not been contacted by Great Wall about Jeep or any other business matter. It doesn't come as a big surprise that Great Wall is only interested Jeep. The brand is seen by many as being the crown jewel of FCA due to its reputation of being a go-anywhere SUV. Analysts believe the brand on its own is worth more than FCA as a whole. Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas estimated last week that Jeep has a value of $33.5 billion vs. the $32 billion for FCA. If Great Wall was to purchase Jeep, what would they do with it? "Our strategic goal is to become the world's largest SUV maker. Acquiring Jeep, a global SUV brand, would enable us to achieve our goal sooner and better" than Great Wall could do with its own brands, said Hui. Great Wall has an r&d center in Los Angeles and has just set up another one in Detroit this year to learn more about the U.S. market. The big question is will FCA be willing to part with Jeep or require Great Wall to buy most of FCA. Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required) -
Ever since the rumor of a Chinese automaker possibly buying Fiat Chrysler Automobiles came to light last week, the various Chinese brands have been saying 'not us'. It seemed no one was interested in taking FCA to the dance, or wanted to admit it out loud. That changed today as Great Wall Motor revealed to Automotive News that it was interested in buying FCA, well part of it. Great Wall President Wang Fengying wrote in an email to Automotive News that the company is intending to buy Jeep and is "connecting with FCA" to possibly begin negotiations. Xu Hui, a spokesman for Great Wall said in a follow-up email that the company "has indirectly expressed interest in Jeep but has not yet made a formal offer or met with FCA's board." A statement from FCA says that it has not been contacted by Great Wall about Jeep or any other business matter. It doesn't come as a big surprise that Great Wall is only interested Jeep. The brand is seen by many as being the crown jewel of FCA due to its reputation of being a go-anywhere SUV. Analysts believe the brand on its own is worth more than FCA as a whole. Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas estimated last week that Jeep has a value of $33.5 billion vs. the $32 billion for FCA. If Great Wall was to purchase Jeep, what would they do with it? "Our strategic goal is to become the world's largest SUV maker. Acquiring Jeep, a global SUV brand, would enable us to achieve our goal sooner and better" than Great Wall could do with its own brands, said Hui. Great Wall has an r&d center in Los Angeles and has just set up another one in Detroit this year to learn more about the U.S. market. The big question is will FCA be willing to part with Jeep or require Great Wall to buy most of FCA. Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required) View full article
