Facing the rapid rise of Chinese truck manufacturers, Christian Levin, CEO of European truck giant Scania, believes that more concerning than Chinese competitors is the regulatory policies of the EU itself.
According to a report by the Dutch commercial vehicle media TTM.nl on October 15th, Rein, who also serves as the CEO of Traton, a subsidiary of Volkswagen Group, said in an interview, "We are not afraid of China. What we fear is Brussels."
Lewin said that the competitiveness of Chinese truck manufacturers should not be underestimated. At the Hanover International Commercial Vehicle Exhibition, he saw 15 Chinese truck manufacturers, and the prices of some of these companies' products could be 30% to 40% lower than those of European brands. The technology for electric trucks has also reached the required level.
He is particularly interested in the production speed and scale advantages of Chinese enterprises. Levin pointed out that the greater the output of electric trucks, the faster enterprises can accumulate experience in battery technology, vehicle manufacturing, cost control, and reliability. According to his rule of thumb, for every doubling in output, costs can be reduced by about 10%.
"China is very good at quickly bringing new technologies into the market and expanding production scale. That's exactly what Europe needs to learn from." He said.
In contrast, the EU’s emission reduction policies have put European manufacturers in a difficult situation.
Laven pointed out that the EU expects electric trucks to account for approximately 35% of new car sales by 2030. However, last year, the market share of pure electric trucks in Europe was only about 2%, and as of this year, it has been only 2.4%. Insufficient charging facilities and high electricity prices, along with the difficulty for transport companies to make a profit, mean that market demand is far from meeting policy targets.
He revealed that Skansa is currently losing money on every electric truck it sells, and the factory's capacity utilization rate is also far below expectations. Therefore, he called for the EU to eliminate fines for companies that fail to meet their carbon emission reduction targets.
"You cannot force customers to buy a semi-trailer truck that is economically unfeasible." Levi said.
Speaking of the Chinese market, Levin said that Skania's investment in China is not contradictory. European companies should understand China and learn from it. He also revealed that the company does not rule out cooperation with Chinese enterprises, but prefers to cooperate in key components and systems, rather than developing complete vehicles with direct competitors.
Meanwhile, he acknowledged that the European truck industry relies on Chinese batteries and components. Trade tensions may affect supply stability, so it is necessary to promote diversification of the supply chain.
However, Levin emphasized that Skanska currently has no plans to sell trucks manufactured in China to Europe. Its business in China is mainly focused on serving the Chinese market, and it may also extend to other parts of Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.
