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On November 24, Volkswagen China officially announced that it would launch a new electric vehicle platform designed specifically for the Chinese market within three years. According to reports, the new platform is derived from Volkswagen Group's MEB platform. From 2026, Volkswagen Group will use this platform as the basis to develop pure electric models tailored to the needs of Chinese customers.

According to media reports, the new platform, named "A main platform" by Volkswagen Group, aims to further develop China's market segment, specifically designed for the preferences of Chinese consumers, with a special focus on battery, electric drive and motor technology. The development cycle of the new platform is 36 months, about 1/3 shorter than the previous platform development cycle of Volkswagen Group.

Volkswagen (China) Technology Co., Ltd., based in Hefei, Anhui Province, will mainly undertake the development of the new platform, which is Volkswagen's largest research and development center outside its headquarters in Germany. In April this year, Volkswagen Group invested about 1 billion euros in Hefei to establish Volkswagen (China) Technology Co., Ltd., which will start operation in January next year. There are already 1200 experts working, and it is expected that by the end of next year, the company will have more than 3000 employees. In addition, Volkswagen will further expand its layout in Hefei and build it into an advanced production, R & D and innovation center. In the future, the Hefei Center will undertake the group's key development tasks, including the development of a local electric vehicle platform for the entry market.

Ralf Brandstaetter, chairman and chief executive of Volkswagen Group (China), said in an interview with the media: "in the next 36 months, Volkswagen (China) Technology Co., Ltd. plans to launch a new platform for electric vehicles aimed at China's entry-level market, and plans to launch 140000-170000 yuan of Volkswagen A-class entry-level pure electric models in China within 36 months."

Volkswagen Group, founded in 1938 and headquartered in Wolfsburg, Germany, is the largest car company in Europe and one of the first foreign car companies to enter the Chinese car market, which has now become the largest single market of Volkswagen Group in the world. Ralf Brandstaetter, chief executive of Volkswagen Group in China, said in an interview that "Volkswagen Group will continue to invest in China, otherwise it will lose competition in three years", it is not difficult to see the importance of the Chinese market to VW Group. The Volkswagen Group's decision to launch China's exclusive A-class pure tram within 36 months is also to deepen the Chinese market.

It should be noted that even though the Chinese market is still Volkswagen's largest single market in the world, Volkswagen is also under great pressure as the domestic car market changes. Data show that Volkswagen delivered 1.4519 million new cars in the Chinese market in the first half of this year, down 1.2% from a year earlier, making it the only single market in the world where Volkswagen sales declined. Auto Industry concern believes that the decline in sales in China may be related to the current changes in China's electric car market and the performance of Volkswagen Group's electric vehicle sales in China.

In the Chinese market, Volkswagen is the most determined in the development of electric vehicles, and it is also an international car company with better development in the field of joint venture electric vehicles. The first ID since the end of 2020. ID that Volkswagen is selling in China since the introduction of electric cars into China. Family models include the ID.3, ID.4CROZZ, ID.4X, ID.6CROZZ and ID.6X, but Volkswagen is still unable to compete with mainstream Chinese electric carmakers. In the previous October sales, for example, the best-selling electric model was the ID.3, with 50500 units, followed by the ID.4CROZZ and ID.4X, with 28100 and 19500, respectively.

The industry believes that under the dual pressure of electrified transformation and global market competition, Volkswagen can only speed up the pace of electrified transformation to reduce the possibility of falling behind.

In July this year, Volkswagen Group announced a cooperation agreement with Xiaopeng Motor and injected about US $700 million into Xiaopeng Motor to improve Volkswagen Group's intelligent online car research and development capability in China. The two sides will jointly develop two Volkswagen brand electric models for the Chinese market, or launch them in the Chinese market in 2026. However, Berred said: "the plan is to launch a cooperative model with Xiaopeng in 36 months, but the time may accelerate, less than 36 months." The release of the "A main platform", which focuses on entry-level electric models, will complement each other with Xiaopeng's cooperative models.

As for longer-term planning, Volkswagen Group brands, including Volkswagen and Audi, will offer more than 30 pure electric models in China by 2030. Of course, for the current Volkswagen Group, the current task is not only to accelerate the transformation of new energy, but also to stabilize the base of fuel-fueled cars. As for the follow-up sales target, Baird told the media: "at present, the fundamentals of Volkswagen oil vehicles are strong, and in the future, Volkswagen Group plans to achieve the first place in international car sales in China and achieve the goal of ranking in the top three in the Chinese market."

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