BEIJING: BMW Group said Friday it is talking with China’s biggest SUV maker about a possible partnership to produce electric versions of its Mini as automakers ramp up electric development under pressure from Beijing to meet sales quotas.
BMW said it signed a letter of intent with Great Wall Motors headquartered in Baoding, southwest of Beijing, and needs to work out a cooperation agreement and investment details.
Auto brands face pressure to meet quotas that require electric vehicles to make up at least 10 percent of sales starting next year. Later, they face pressure to raise that to meet increasingly demanding fuel efficiency standards.
Beijing is using access to its auto market, the world’s largest, as leverage to induce global automakers to help Chinese brands develop battery and other electric vehicle technology. Foreign automakers that want to manufacture in China must do so through local partners, which requires them to hand over know-how or help potential Chinese competitors develop their own.
General Motors, Volkswagen, Nissan Motor and other brands already have announced similar plans with local partners to produce dozens of electric models for China.
MINI’s first battery electric model is due to be produced at its main British factory in Oxford in 2019, according to BMW.
“This signals a further clear commitment to the electrified future of the MINI brand,” BMW said in a statement.
Sales of pure-electric passenger vehicles in China rose 82 percent last year to 468,000, according to an industry group, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. That was more than double the US level of just under 200,000.
China is BMW’s biggest market. The Munich-based automaker said about 560,000 BMW brand vehicles were delivered to Chinese customers in 2017, more than its next two markets — the United States and Germany — combined.
China was MINI’s fourth-largest market in 2017, with 35,000 vehicles delivered, the company said.
An electrics venture with BMW would be a boost for Great Wall, which industry analysts have warned will struggle to satisfy Beijing’s sales quotas and had yet to announce any significant electric plans.
Great Wall sells more than 1 million fuel-hungry SUVs annually. That sets a high baseline for electric sales and will make it harder to meet fleet average efficiency standards.
BMW looking at Chinese-made electric Mini
BMW looking at Chinese-made electric Mini
BYD Americas CEO hails Middle East as ‘homeland for innovation’
- In an interview on the sidelines of Davos, Stella Li highlighted the region’s openness to new technologies and opportunities for growth
DAVOS: BYD Americas CEO Stella Li described the Middle East as a “homeland for innovation” during an interview with Arab News on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum.
The executive of the Chinese electric vehicle giant highlighted the region’s openness to new technologies and opportunities for growth.
“The people (are) very open. And then from the government, from everybody there, they are open to enjoy the technology,” she said.
BYD has accelerated its expansion of battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids across the Middle East and North Africa region, with a strong focus on Gulf Cooperation Council countries like the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
GCC EV markets, led by the UAE and Saudi Arabia, rank among the world’s fastest-growing. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund has been aggressively investing in the EV sector, backing Lucid Motors, launching its brand Ceer, and supporting charging infrastructure development.
However, EVs still account for just over 1 percent of total car sales, as high costs, limited charging infrastructure, and extreme weather remain challenges.
In summer 2025, BYD announced it was aiming to triple its Saudi footprint following Tesla’s entry, targeting 5,000 EV sales and 10 showrooms by late 2026.
“We commit a lot of investment there (in the region),” Li noted, adding that the company is building a robust dealer network and introducing cutting-edge technology.
Discussing growth plans, she envisioned Saudi Arabia and the wider Middle East as a potential “dreamland” for innovation — what she described as a regional “Silicon Valley.”
Talking about the EV ambitions of the Saudi government, she said: “If they set up (a) target, they will make (it) happen. Then they need a technology company like us to support their … 2030 Vision.”
