FAW accelerate expansion into new energy sector and oversea market

CHANGCHUN, China, Dec. 9, 2024 /Xinhua-AsiaNet/–
Hongqi, a car brand under China’s leading automaker China FAW Group Co., Ltd., is accelerating its expansion in the new energy sector, with its new platforms ready to launch three electric models.

Founded in 1953 in the northeastern city of Changchun, FAW was the first automaker in China to own brands including Hongqi, Jiefang and Besturn. It also has joint ventures with carmakers such as Volkswagen and Toyota.

Hongqi, which means “red flag” in Chinese, is an iconic Chinese car brand that was established in 1958. It has become renowned as the vehicle used for parades during national celebrations.

One of the latest model – the Tiangong 08 has started its pre-sale during the Guangzhou International Automobile Exhibition. while the other two new models, a sedan and an SUV, will be launched in 2025.

Liu Yigong, general manager of China FAW Group Co., Ltd., said that the Hongqi brand has devoted the majority of its technological innovation and new production capacity into the new energy sector.

Image: Hongqi booth in the Guangzhou International Automobile Exhibition (FAW)

Tiangong 08 is the first of the Hongqi Tiangong series developed on Hongqi’s platform of Tiangong for pure electric vehicle development and the platform of Jiuzhang for intelligent technology development.

Since 2023, FAW Hongqi has fully accelerated the layout of new energy vehicles and sold 270,000 new energy vehicles. The new energy sector has become a new growth engine that has helped sustain Hongqi’s role as a national car brand.

In the next five years, the company has planned to invest 120 billion yuan (about 16.6 billion U.S. dollars) in research and development in the new energy sector.

For the joint venture cooperation sector, in January this year, Audi initiated pre-mass production at the Audi FAW NEV project, its first production facility for purely electric vehicles in China, marking an important step for the company in China’s new energy vehicle (NEV) market.

In cooperation with its partner FAW Group Co., Ltd., the project, with total investment expected to surpass 35 billion yuan, broke ground in June 2022. Three pure electric models tailored for the Chinese market are expected to roll off its production lines by year-end, successively becoming available on the market from early 2025.

Oversea market is also growing very fast. From January to August, 2024, FAW’s overseas sales hit a new high at 86,000 vehicles, representing a 71% increase from a year ago. Currently, FAW Hongqi’s overseas business covers 28 countries and regions, including Europe, the Middle East and Southeast Asia, and operates 128 stores around the world.