Industry insiders and enterprise representatives gathered to share their insights and jointly explore cooperation opportunities of the new energy vehicle (NEV) industry between China and ASEAN member states at the Sub-forum on NEV Industry Cooperation held at Wuzhou Guest House in Shenzhen yesterday.
The forum was one of the three parallel forums of the two-day China-ASEAN Forum on Emerging Industries, which opened in Shenzhen on Tuesday and aimed to foster collaboration over emerging industries amidst rapid technological advancements and industrial transformations.
Eight speakers delivered keynote speeches at the sub-forum, followed by a panel discussion involving five enterprise representatives.
Tang Zhimin, founding dean of the international college and director of China ASEAN Studies at Panyapiwat Institute of Management, gave a talk on the cooperation between China and Thailand in NEVs, providing an overview of Thailand’s NEV industry and the business model for China-Thailand cooperation in the field.
Wang Huaibing, chief financial officer of Malaysia’s national carmaker Proton, said that good product planning and sustainable product competitiveness are the prerequisites for the success of enterprises.
According to Wang, there are three stages for Chinese companies seeking to go global. While technology and product are key at the initial stage, corporate management and culture come in at the second stage. And, at the third stage, branding and local research and development will play a role.
“Companies must have a win-win mindset, a management team with strong leadership, professionalism and language skills, and a strong ability to capture business opportunities and prevent risks,” Wang shared when talking about firms going global.
Liang Rui, vice president of Shenzhen-based battery manufacturer Sunwoda, said in his speech that new energy and energy storage will eventually become the mainstream energy solutions worldwide.
Liang analyzed the shortcomings and provided countermeasures for the sustainable development of lithium batteries in China. “Batteries and hydrogen energy each have their own characteristics and are highly complementary, jointly forming the mainstream energy storage method,” he said.
Yu Dexiang, chairman of TELD, a Chinese NEV charging equipment manufacturer and charging network operator, believed that NEVs, charging networks and micro grids offer the best path towards achieving carbon neutrality by 2060.
According to Yu, energy storage is the core of carbon neutrality, with cost being the key factor rather than technology.
Chen Wan, an executive from Guangzhou Automobile Group New Energy Co. Ltd., a subsidiary of GAC, advised Chinese carmakers to switch from a “trade mindset” to a “brand mindset” in response to new circumstances.
Qu Jizong, executive vice president of Chery International in Indonesia, shared the company’s development strategies in ASEAN countries. Qu disclosed that Chery aims to capture a top-three market share in Indonesia by 2027.