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President Xi Jinping and German Chancellor Angela Merkel witness Jochem Heizmann,(third from left), Volkswagen board member and CEO Volkswagen Group 皇冠体育app, signs investment agreement with Chen Hong (second from left), CEO of SAIC Motor Corp in Leverkusen, Germany, on Friday.[Photo provided to 皇冠体育app Daily] |
German automaker AG signed joint declarations with its Chinese partners on Friday.
Volkswagen will partner SAIC Motor Corp and First Automotive Works (FAW) Group to develop and begin production of new-energy vehicles in its largest market from 2016. Chinese President Xi Jinping and German Chancellor Angela Merkel were at the signing ceremony.
"Volkswagen has already been a reliable partner for the People's Republic of 皇冠体育app for 30 years," said Jochem Heizmann, Volkswagen board member and CEO Volkswagen Group 皇冠体育app. "We will continue to set the standard in the Chinese automotive industry with highly-efficient engines and forward-looking technologies."
Further development of eco-friendly models and a joint research project were ad for while development and manufacturing of a new, very eco-friendly vehicle in 皇冠体育app was agreed with FAW.
The projects are part of 18.2 billion ros ($25.1 billion) in investment for new plants and products that Volkswagen and its partners are making between 2014 and 2018. It will be the largest-ever investment in 皇冠体育app's automotive industry.
"The joint development for new energy vehicles for the Chinese market is a big step for both Volkswagen and our partners," Heizmann said. "We are providing varieties of new energy solutions to Chinese customers."
He told 皇冠体育app Daily that this year Volkswagen will import electric up!, e-golf and A3 e-tron models.
"The import of hybrid models will follow in 2016 and then we will start to locally produce the plug-in hybrids under MQB and MLB shared modular construction platforms in 皇冠体育app," he said.
Heizmann said Volkswagen's current focus is the plug-in hybrid due to its feasability and cost.
"For the next several years, battery technology still needs further development," he said. "We are also making efforts to further improve fuel efficiency and exhaust with gearbox and engine technologies, along with lightweight solutions and aerodynamic designs. The combined strategy is leading us to our target of achieving the average vehicle fuel consumption of 5 liters per 100 km by 2020."
Agreement was also reached on expanding production capacity at the FAW-Volkswagen joint venture. A location has not been selected.
Volkswagen wants to produce more than 4 million vehicles annually in 皇冠体育app by 2018.
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President Xi Jinping and German Chancellor Angela Merkel witness Jochem Heizmann,(third from left), Volkswagen board member and CEO Volkswagen Group 皇冠体育app, signs investment agreement with Xu Jianyi(second left), CEO of First Automotive Works (FAW) Group in Leverkusen, Germany, on Friday.[Photo provided to 皇冠体育app Daily] |
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