Category: Industry News

China Electric eMobility eV Evergrande Hengchi 5 Industry News OTA

Hengchi 5 gets assisted driving capability days after Evergrande NEV warns of production halt risk

Post author By Lei Kang/CnEVPost
Post date April 4, 2023

The H-Pilot assisted driving system is available for the first time for the Hengchi 5, giving the vehicle the ability to perform full-speed adaptive cruise control and lane keeping.

Hengchi 5 gets assisted driving capability days after Evergrande NEV warns of production halt risk-CnEVPost

Evergrande New Energy Vehicle Group (Evergrande NEV), the EV division of China Evergrande Group, brought an important software update to its first production model, even though it made an announcement two weeks ago that there was a risk of discontinuing production.

The Hengchi 5 received an OTA upgrade on April 3, with the H-Pilot assisted driving system available for the first time, Evergrande NEV said in articles on its social media accounts yesterday.

With the update, Hengchi 5 will see 12 controller (ECU) optimizations, 14 new features, and 25 functional optimizations.

With H-Pilot support, the Hengchi 5 will be able to achieve full-speed adaptive cruise control and lane-keeping on city streets as well as highways.

Hengchi 5 gets assisted driving capability days after Evergrande NEV warns of production halt risk-CnEVPost

The vehicle will also receive automatic emergency braking capability, which monitors the vehicle's environment in front of it in real time and automatically slows it down in the event of a potential collision.

Hengchi 5 also gains nine assisted driving features, including cornering speed assist, forward/rearward collision warning, lane departure warning, blind spot monitoring, and traffic sign recognition.

Hengchi will continue to bring users a better driving experience through OTA upgrades, the article said, adding that higher-level intelligent driving systems will be opened up next.

Hengchi 5 gets assisted driving capability days after Evergrande NEV warns of production halt risk-CnEVPost

Hengchi 5 is the first model of Evergrande NEV's Hengchi Auto in production, which opened for delivery on October 29, 2022.

The model is currently available in only one version with a starting price of RMB 179,000 ($26,010).

Here is a video about the OTA update posted by Hengchi on its Weibo account.

On December 2 last year, Reuters reported that Evergrande NEV had suspended mass production of the Hengchi 5 due to a lack of sufficient new orders for the SUV.

On March 23, Evergrande NEV said in a Hong Kong Stock Exchange announcement that it was at risk of suspending production without access to additional liquidity.

Hengchi 5 was in continuous volume production and has delivered more than 900 units, according to the announcement.

Trading in Evergrande NEV's shares in Hong Kong has been suspended since April 1, 2022, and a date for restarting trading has not yet been set.

($1 = RMB 6.8819)

Hengchi 5 gets assisted driving capability days after Evergrande NEV warns of production halt risk-CnEVPost

Evergrande NEV warns risks of production halt if it can't get additional liquidity

The post Hengchi 5 gets assisted driving capability days after Evergrande NEV warns of production halt risk appeared first on CnEVPost.

For more articles, please visit CnEVPost.

China Electric eMobility eV Industry News Research Note

China auto sales sluggish on consumer sentiment, improvement expected in Q2, says Deutsche Bank

Post author By Phate Zhang/CnEVPost
Post date April 3, 2023

Price wars have now become the consensus among investors, setting a relatively low bar for EV makers to beat.

(Image credit: CnEVPost)

Low consumer sentiment in the wake of the Covid wave has led to weak auto sales in China, though the situation is expected to see relief in the second quarter, and the launch of new models and lower lithium carbonate prices are also encouraging, according to Deutsche Bank.

The underlying cause of sluggish auto sales in China can be mostly attributed to consumer sentiment. After a quick Covid reopening, consumers prioritized spending on services but reduced purchases of durable goods, Deutsche Bank analyst Edison Yu's team said in a research note sent to investors today.

In the first two months of the year, China saw a 12 percent year-on-year increase in the dining and lodging sector, and spending on food, clothing, jewelry and even furniture also increased, the team said, adding that the only exceptions were cars and smartphones, with the former falling 13 percent year-on-year.

In addition, as automakers cut prices, consumers felt more compelled to wait for better deals, the team said.

Price wars are now the consensus among investors, which has set a relatively low bar for electric vehicle (EV) makers to beat, the team said.

"In particular, NIO and XPEV will see a clear sales/margin trough in 1Q followed by a large upswing from new model launches and lower lithium carbonate prices (4-6% points gross margin tailwind)," the team wrote.

Looking ahead, Deutsche Bank's China macro team believes consumer spending on durable goods should normalize in the second half of this year.

The job market is expected to improve due to a strong recovery in the service sector, and the real estate market is also on track to recover, benefiting from substantial excess household savings and favorable lending policies, according to the note.

These could lead to an increase in consumer confidence, which in turn could lead to a recovery in spending on cars and other consumer durables.

While the price war initially focused on EVs, traditional internal combustion engine automakers have also begun offering big promotions to clear their inventories, especially for vehicles that do not meet China's new emissions standards.

As a sign of the height of the price war, there were reportedly Toyota dealers offering a free gasoline car with the purchase of its bZ4x EV, which has been suffering from sluggish demand. Volkswagen has also cut prices on internal combustion engine and EV models in its lineup, the team noted.

This has led to an even more challenging pricing environment that should last at least through the end of April, Yu's team said.

"Ultimately, we expect weaker players to get squeezed out of the market (e.g., Enovate, Leap Motor, WM) and more stable pricing to emerge," the team wrote.

For the second quarter, the team continues to see industry volume growth and has raised its NEV retail sales forecast from 1.65 million to 1.75 million, implying a 32 percent quarter-on-quarter increase, a 49 percent year-on-year increase, and a 35 percent penetration rate.

Here's the team's take on the performance of the major EV makers that have already announced March deliveries.

March OEM recap

Li Auto delivered 20,823 vehicles (+25% MoM, +89% YoY), below our forecast. However, this still translated to nearly 20% market share of the 300-500k RMB premium SUV market in China. The new L7 five-seat SUV began deliveries in March and will see volume grow sequentially.

The company exited the month with 299 retail stores and 318 servicing centers.

NIO delivered 10,378 units (-15% MoM, +4% YoY), below our forecast. De-stocking of older 866 gen-1 models seems to be nearing an end.

Additionally, a face-lift is coming for the ET7 which is likely suppressing demand for that model. NIO exited the month with 1,339 battery swap stations and 1,285 fast charging stations.

XPeng delivered 7,002 units (+17% MoM; -55% YoY), below our expectations. P7 did sell 3,030 units though, representing a 32% sequential improvement. The P7i face-lift should help volume in 2Q as management expressed confidence in the initial order book.

XPeng also began the rollout of the first part of its XNGP high level ADAS platform in Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Shanghai, enabling city pilot capabilities for its newest models.

Initially, the systems will still use HD mapping but this will be phased out in 2H23 allowing the full capabilities of XNGP to work in greater number of cities.

The company believes its software perception running on XNET deep neural network training will allow it to reduce reliance on HD mapping which only a few large cities have available.

Zeekr delivered 6,663 vehicles (+22% MoM; +271% YoY).

NIO delivers 10,378 vehicles in Mar, down 14.6% from Feb

The post China auto sales sluggish on consumer sentiment, improvement expected in Q2, says Deutsche Bank appeared first on CnEVPost.

For more articles, please visit CnEVPost.

Tags NIO, XPeng, Zeekr

China Electric eMobility eV Industry News Landian Landian E5 Seres

Seres unveils new NEV brand Landian and 1st model E5 with BYD, Huawei technology

Post author By Lei Kang/CnEVPost
Post date March 30, 2023

The Landian E5 is a mid-size plug-in hybrid SUV with a starting price of RMB 139,900.

Chinese tech giant Huawei's key partner in the automotive sector, Seres Group, has launched another new energy vehicle (NEV) brand to increase its bets in the sector.

Seres today officially unveiled the Landian (蓝电) brand and made its first model, the plug-in hybrid E5, available with technology from Huawei and BYD, according to an online launch event.

Landian literally means blue electricity in Chinese. The brand is positioned as a builder of the Internet of Everything ecosystem in the "E era", where the letter E refers to Electric.

By 2023, the Landian brand will build 340 experience stores and 160 delivery centers, Seres said.

The Landian E5 is a mid-size SUV, available in five- and seven-seat versions. It measures 4,760 mm in length, 1,865 mm in width and 1,710 mm in height, and has a wheelbase of 2,785 mm.

The car is available in two versions with starting prices of RMB 139,900 ($20,330) and RMB 151,900 respectively.

The Landian E5 is powered by Seres' DE-i electric drive platform, which uses the F31A 1.5L PHEV-specific engine and DHT300 electric hybrid system from BYD's FinDreams Power.

The engine has a maximum power of 81 kW and a maximum torque of 135 Nm, while the electric motor has a maximum power of 130 kW and a maximum torque of 300 Nm. It can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 7.4 seconds.

The car has an NEDC range of 100 km, 110 km on battery power and a combined WLTC range of 1,150 km on full fuel and full charge.

The Landian E5 is equipped with Huawei's HiCar 3.0 system, a lite version of HarmonyOS for cars, but supports features including seamless connectivity with cell phones.

Chongqing-based Seres Group was renamed from Chongqing Sokon Industrial Group in July 2022. It is Huawei's most important partner in the automotive industry to date.

Huawei announced on April 20, 2021 that the company officially started selling cars, with the Seres SF5 from the Seres Group's Seres brand being the first model to enter its channels.

The Seres brand announced the launch of a premium NEV brand called AITO with Huawei on December 2, 2021, and has already launched models including the M5 and M7.

Seres Group sold 12,773 vehicles in February, including 6,577 NEVs, according to figures it announced earlier this month.

On February 25, the Seres brand and Huawei signed an agreement on deepening their joint business, which will see the two jointly launch a new vehicle platform, the first flagship model of which is scheduled for release in 2023.

Seres unveiled aggressive plans at the time, saying the joint business aims to see annual sales of NEVs reach 1 million units by 2026.

($1 = RMB 6.8813)

Seres, Huawei sign deal on joint business, aim to sell 1 million NEVs by 2026

The post Seres unveils new NEV brand Landian and 1st model E5 with BYD, Huawei technology appeared first on CnEVPost.

For more articles, please visit CnEVPost.

Tags BYD, Huawei

China Electric eMobility eV Industry News Lithium Lithium Carbonate Lithium Prices Research Note

Analysts explain how falling lithium carbonate prices affect EV costs

Post author By Phate Zhang/CnEVPost
Post date March 30, 2023

For an EV with a 70-kWh pack, the cost of the battery is now RMB 12,300 - RMB 14,500 lower than when lithium carbonate prices were at their previous high, analysts say.

Analysts explain how falling lithium carbonate prices affect EV costs-CnEVPost

Falling lithium carbonate prices are known to benefit the profitability of electric vehicle (EV) makers. So how will this price change affect the cost of EVs? A new research note provides a good analysis.

An EV powered by a lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery typically uses 30-40 kilograms of lithium carbonate, while an EV with a ternary lithium battery consumes 50-70 kilograms of the material, said Haitong International Securities analyst Yang Bin's team in a research note today.

When the price of lithium carbonate drops by RMB 100,000 ($14,540) per ton, the cost of ternary lithium batteries and LFP batteries will see marginal decreases of RMB 60 to RMB 70 per kWh, respectively, the team's calculations show.

In this case, the battery cost would be RMB 4,200 to RMB 4,900 lower for an all-electric vehicle with a 70-kWh battery capacity.

This means that the current battery cost of an all-electric vehicle with a 70-kWh battery capacity is already RMB 12,300 - RMB 14,500 lower than when lithium carbonate prices were at their previous high, the team said.

As a backdrop, lithium carbonate prices have never seen a single day of gains in China this year and continue to fall by several thousand RMB today, according to data from Mysteel.

The average price of battery-grade lithium carbonate per ton in China fell by RMB 7,500 to RMB 256,500 today, down about 57 percent from RMB 590,000,000 last November. The average price of industrial grade lithium carbonate per ton also fell by RMB 7,500 to RMB 210,000 today.

Falling battery costs will drive down the overall cost of EVs, which will allow automakers to see their gross margins repair, according to Haitong's research note.

However, the team also noted that in the long run, automakers need to achieve technology upgrades, reduce costs and improve competitiveness in order to capture sufficient market share and profitability, considering EV penetration is already high in China.

With lower lithium carbonate prices, EV makers will have more room for pricing as they gain greater profit margins, the team said, adding that this is expected to allow them to gain greater market share by cutting prices.

Although the price of lithium carbonate has fallen by more than half from its high a few months ago, the team believes there is still room to fall.

In 2022, China's lithium resource supply was 727,000 tons and demand was 796,000 tons, the team said.

In 2023, China's lithium resource supply is expected to reach 1.088 million tons and demand is expected to be 1.034 million tons, according to the team.

With the supply of lithium resources outstripping demand, there is still room for lithium carbonate prices to fall, with the price of battery grade lithium carbonate expected to fall to around RMB 200,000 per ton by the end of 2023, the team said.

($1 = RMB 6.8772)

Panic selling of lithium carbonate just won't stop

The post Analysts explain how falling lithium carbonate prices affect EV costs appeared first on CnEVPost.

For more articles, please visit CnEVPost.

China China Auto Market Electric eMobility eV Industry News Policy price war

China to allow extended sales periods for ICE models based on existing emissions standard, report says

Post author By Phate Zhang/CnEVPost
Post date March 30, 2023

Price war has been the most talked about topic in China's auto industry this month, and the imminent implementation of a new emissions standard is seen as a major factor.

(Image credit: CnEVPost)

The imminent implementation of a new emissions standard in three months is seen as a major factor behind the price war launched by internal combustion engine (ICE) automakers this month. Now, these automakers may be able to get some respite.

China's policy on extending the sales period for vehicles built to the 6a emissions standard may be announced soon, National Business Daily reported today, citing Shen Jinjun, president of the China Auto Dealers Association (CADA), as saying at a forum.

A government document on the switch to the China 6b standard and the extension of the sales period for 6a-compliant models will be released soon, Shen said, without revealing any more information.

China released the final rule for stage 6 light vehicle emission limits and measurement methods (China 6 standard) in December 2016, a new standard that combines best practices from European and US regulatory requirements.

The standard is being implemented in two phases, with the 6a standard already taking effect on July 1, 2020, and the 6b standard coming into effect on July 1, 2023.

During this month, price war has been the most talked about topic in the Chinese auto industry, and the upcoming entry into force of the 6b standard is seen as an important factor.

There are still some older models on the market that do not meet China 6b emissions regulations, and the de-stocking of these models could have an impact on production, sales and prices in the auto industry, a team from CITIC Securities said in a March 13 research note.

In early March, authorities in Hubei province joined forces with many local car companies to offer subsidies to consumers for car purchases, with some models being subsidized by as much as 90,000 yuan ($13,060). This was seen as the beginning of the massive outbreak of the price war.

Subsequently, several brands, including Volkswagen and BMW, announced similar large discounts. At the same time, some car companies made it clear that they would not participate in the price war, trying to dispel the wait-and-see sentiment of potential consumers.

The price war has had an unprecedented impact on China's auto industry, and on March 22, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) called on all parties to return to rationality and bring order to the market.

On March 23, China's Auto Dealers Chamber of Commerce (CADCC) called on regulators to delay the implementation of the China 6b emissions standard.

Since the beginning of the year, the CADCC has received feedback from many auto dealer groups that they are under significant pressure to survive because of the impending full implementation of the China 6b emissions standard.

A study covering nearly 100 auto dealer groups showed that nearly 98.89 percent of them strongly recommended that China delay the implementation of the China 6b emissions standard until January 1, 2024, according to the CADCC.

These dealer groups suggest that regulators allow sufficient switchover time for car companies and dealers to deal with the existing inventory of vehicles that do not meet the China 6b emissions standard.

($1 = RMB 6.8906)

China's transition to new emission standard: How will this affect auto market?

The post China to allow extended sales periods for ICE models based on existing emissions standard, report says appeared first on CnEVPost.

For more articles, please visit CnEVPost.

China Electric eMobility eV Industry News Product Launch Saic-gm-wuling Tesla Wuling Binguo

SAIC-GM-Wuling launches new EV model, price from $8,680

Post author By Lei Kang/CnEVPost
Post date March 30, 2023

In the January-February period, SAIC-GM-Wuling sold 50,433 NEVs in China, second only to BYD and Tesla.

(Image credit: Wuling)

SAIC-GM-Wuling, which has had success in the mini electric vehicle (EV) market, is offering another new model to Chinese consumers.

Wuling yesterday officially launched the new EV model Binguo in China, offering five versions with starting prices of RMB 59,800 ($8,683) to RMB 83,800.

The car is an A0-class EV with a length, width and height of 3,950 mm, 1,708, mm and 1,580 mm, respectively, and a wheelbase of 2,560 mm.

For comparison, Wuling's current hot-selling Hongguang Mini EV has a length, width and height of 2,920 mm, 1,493 mm and 1,621 mm, with a wheelbase of 1,940 mm. The Mini EV has a starting price of RMB 32,800.

The Wuling Binguo is available in two powertrain versions, with a permanent magnet synchronous motor as standard and a maximum power of 30 kW and 50 kW respectively.

The vehicle is equipped with lithium iron phosphate battery packs with capacities of 17.9 kWh and 31.9 kWh, respectively, and has a CLTC range of 203 km and 333 km, respectively.

The 333 km range model supports fast charging, taking 35 minutes to charge from 30 percent to 80 percent.

With slow charging, the car can be charged from 20 percent to 100 percent in 5.5 hours.

It is worth noting that although the model was officially launched yesterday, it has been available for pre-order since March 2 and more than 2,700 units have already been delivered.

SAIC-GM-Wuling is a joint venture between SAIC Group, General Motors and Liuzhou Wuling Motors, headquartered in Liuzhou, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, southwest China.

It sells vehicles based on the GSEV (Global Small Electric Vehicle) architecture in China, including the Mini EV, KiWi EV, Nano EV and Air EV. In addition to these pure electric models, SAIC-GM-Wuling also sells fuel-powered SUVs, MPVs and vans.

In January-February, SAIC-GM-Wuling sold 50,433 new energy vehicles (NEVs) in China, down 15.3 percent year-on-year, according to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).

But the automaker was third in China in NEV sales in the first two months, with a 6.5 percent share, behind BYD's 40.8 percent and Tesla's 7.8 percent.

($1 = RMB 6.8871)

Wuling's new mini car Air EV officially launched in China

The post SAIC-GM-Wuling launches new EV model, price from $8,680 appeared first on CnEVPost.

For more articles, please visit CnEVPost.

Tags BYD, Tesla

China Electric eMobility eV Industry News Product Launch Saic-gm-wuling Tesla Wuling Binguo

SAIC-GM-Wuling launches new EV model, price from $8,680

Post author By Lei Kang/CnEVPost
Post date March 30, 2023