Chongqing autos eye bigger market in China, world

Supported by multiple high-tech functions, various Chinese new energy vehicle brands have become increasingly popular among Chinese consumers.

Aito M9 and Avatr 12, both Chongqing-made premium NEVs, are among the popular choices in China.

Aito M9, made by Seres, is a six-seater SUV that features a futuristic smart cockpit running on Harmony OS, Huawei's operating system. Avatr is a joint venture between Chang'an Auto, lithium-ion battery provider CATL and Huawei.

The common factor to the two models is that Seres and Chang'an are both based in Chongqing, which is building a world-class intelligent connected NEV industrial cluster.

The city has already registered three firsts in the country in the first half of the year in terms of auto production, NEV production growth and sales of high-end models, according to the Chongqing Economic and Information Technology Commission.

From January to June, Chongqing's auto production reached 1.214 million units and its NEV output was 391,000 units — a year-on-year increase of 50 percent — much higher than the national average of 30.1 percent. Its growth rate ranked first among the top 10 provinces and cities in the country for automobile production.

Seres has received over 110,000 orders for the flagship NEV model Aito M9, which now ranks first among China-made vehicles priced over 500,000 yuan ($68,792), setting a new sales record for Chinese luxury models.

"Seres and Huawei have been cooperating deeply for nearly four years to provide users with high-end smart electric vehicle products and smart travel solutions," said Seres' Chairman Zhang Xinghai.

"We have earned a good reputation by providing users with good products, good experiences and good services. Now we are ready to enter international markets with newly developed luxury models."

Chang'an has also reported a good performance.

It launched its new energy sport utility vehicle Deepal G318 in mid-June with prices ranging from 175,000 to 310,800 yuan, and has received over 20,000 orders so far.

In the first half, Chang'an Auto's cumulative wholesale sales exceeded 1.334 million vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 9.7 percent.

Thanks to its overseas market development, sales of Chang'an's independent brands abroad were 203,000 units, a year-on-year increase of 74.8 percent.

"In the first half, we established 73 subsidiaries and 12 global manufacturing bases around the world; our products are exported to 77 countries and regions," said Chang'an Auto Vice-President Wang Xiaofei.

"We are committed to becoming a world-class automobile brand."

As a traditional industrial powerhouse, the southwestern municipality already boasts a strong auto manufacturing industrial chain.

With its overall high-quality development, the mega city with 32 million people witnessed a 6.1 percent GDP growth in the first six months, ranking second in growth rate in the country, according to local authorities.

"Since the beginning of this year, Chongqing's auto industry has become more high-end, intelligent, connected, clustered and greener, showing good momentum," the latest report from auto department of the commission showed.

The city's total output of models priced over 200,000 yuan reached 294,000 units, a year-on-year increase of 132.4 percent, according to the report.

Thanks to Chongqing automakers' fast upgrades in technology, domestic consumers can enjoy the latest advances in autonomous driving.

"Long-distance driving is very tiring for me and M9's self-driving technology is quite useful," said Yuan Hao, a computer engineer who bought an M9 in April.

Avatr 11 and 12, Deepal SL03i and S7i, Aito M7 and M9 and other models made in Chongqing are already equipped with L3 autonomous driving technology. Chang'an Auto plans to launch vehicles with L4 autonomous driving capabilities by 2025.