Zeekr to make foray into Europe in Q4

Zeekr, a premium electric brand under China's Geely Holding Group, is set to enter Europe in the fourth quarter this year, said its top executive on Saturday.

"We will enter developed European markets in the fourth quarter this year. We will take conventional premium brands head-on in the most developed markets," said CEO An Conghui at the annual China EV 100 Forum held in Beijing.

An, also president of Geely Holding Group, said Zeekr set up its European sales team last year and its products are now in the process of validation.

He said details of the company's European strategy will be released at the Shanghai auto show, which is to be held in late April.

China exported 3.11 million vehicles in 2022, overtaking Germany as the world's second largest vehicle exporter.

Of them, NEV exports totaled 670,000 units, more than doubling the figure in 2021, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

"Chinese carmakers should export NEVs in a faster and a more confident way," said An. "NEVs should become a new global label of China's (manufacturing) strength."

Zeekr, a two-year old startup, saw its cumulative sales to reach 93,000 units by the end of March 2023, with its first model, the 001 crossover, fetching a similar price as German premium brands including BMW and Mercedes-Benz.