On June 26, Wang Di, China’s ambassador to Canada, told Reuters that a luxury car brand manufactured in China (under the Geely group) will arrive in Canada next month. This will be the first batch of Chinese-branded vehicles imported into Canada according to the Sino-Canadian agreement.
"Chinese electric vehicles will arrive in Canada next month," Wang Di said, "and a ceremony will be held when they deliver the vehicles in Montreal."
Reuters reported that Lotus Cars did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Canadian government was unable to comment immediately on the expected arrival time of the first batch of vehicles.
Wang Di also said that other Chinese brands such as Chery and BYD are coordinating with Canadian government agencies to complete the necessary steps before shipping their vehicles to Canada. Canadian officials previously stated that some vehicles have already arrived and the necessary procedures for import have been completed.
He said, "I hope that by this autumn, other Chinese brand electric vehicles will be able to complete the necessary procedures and enter the Canadian market."
Recently, Li Ke, vice president of BYD, stated that they may begin selling products in the Canadian market starting next year.
Except for imported cars, the Canadian government also plans to attract joint-venture enterprises and investments into the country's electric vehicle supply chain.
Regarding this, Wang Di told Reuters that Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers are interested in establishing joint ventures, but they will first focus on building sales networks and assessing market demand.
May, Lianhua cars loaded onto a transport vessel. Video screenshot
In January, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visited China and during his visit signed the "China-Canada Economic and Trade Cooperation Roadmap". Both sides made some specific arrangements to properly address economic and trade issues in areas such as electric vehicles, steel and aluminum products, rapeseed, agricultural and aquatic products. They also reached positive consensus on issues such as increasing direct flights, improving the business environment, and agricultural product inspection and quarantine.
The Chinese side has canceled the additional 100% tariffs imposed on imported Chinese electric vehicles. China will be granted a quota of 49,000 electric vehicles per year. Under this quota, electric vehicles will enjoy a most-favored-nation tariff rate of 6.1%. The additional 100% tax will no longer be applied. The number of quotas will increase year by year according to certain proportions.
According to Bloomberg, in early May this year, a trucking vessel named 'Glovis Treasure' set sail from Shanghai, heading towards Canada. The vessel was carrying a small number of luxury Lianlian cars manufactured in China.
On May 7th, Lotus Cars (China), a subsidiary of Geely Automobile, posted a video on social media showing 18 Elettre cars being loaded onto the transport vessel 'Glovis Treasure'. The video read: 'China’s first automobile brand breaks through North American certification barriers, setting a new record for Chinese electric vehicle exports. From the production line at Lotus Cars' global smart factory to its overseas expansion in Canada, this showcases the power of Chinese intelligent manufacturing to the world.'
Additionally, a source familiar with the matter said that by the end of May, hundreds of cars produced by Tesla’s factory in Shanghai had begun to arrive in Canada.
