Renault: China's light commercial vehicle market will face drastic changes in next 5 years

The leading role of the light commercial vehicle market has been played by the Renault Group. Especially in European countries, the type and market share of light commercial vehicles sold by the Renault Group are far ahead of other automakers and take the lead. In the Chinese market, Renault Group is playing the role of a "second pioneer", hoping to accelerate the launch of Renault Group's light commercial vehicles and electric vehicles in China through the revival of the Renault Brilliance Jinbei.

On September 17, IIA interviewed Mr. François Provost, Senior Vice President of Renault Group and Chairman of Renault Group China. He said: "Compared with the very developed passenger car market in China, there is still much room for improvement in the level of commercial vehicles. We believe that China's light commercial vehicle market will undergo drastic changes in the next five years, and we are very confident that we can achieve great development in the light commercial vehicle market. "

At the beginning of the year, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, China's auto market, which was already under downward pressure, experienced another frost, and production and sales fell sharply in the first quarter. However, after the epidemic was quickly and effectively controlled, the Chinese auto market has also ushered in a rapid rebound, especially the sales of commercial vehicles have not been seriously affected.

According to the statistical report of the China Association of Automobile Manufactures, from January to August this year, the cumulative sales of vehicles were 14.551 million units, a year-on-year decrease of 9.7%. Specifically, sales of passenger vehicles were 11.288 million units, a year-on-year decrease of 15.4%. Commercial vehicle sales were 3.263 million units, an increase of 17.3% year-on-year, and the growth rate increased again.

It is precisely seeing this market potential that in April today, the Renault Group announced a new strategy in the Chinese market, shifting its focus in China to the field of electric vehicles and light commercial vehicles. The Renault Brilliance Jinbei is an important carrier for Renault's light commercial vehicles and electric vehicles to land in China.

Mr. François Provost said: "China is the world's largest electric vehicle market, and at the same time it is a leader in the industry. Renault is also a leading electric vehicle company in Europe, so we are willing to bring our advantages to the Chinese market.

However, it should be noted that the growth rate of China's electric vehicle market has slowed due to the decline of subsidies and increased competition, and it is not easy to get a share of the pie. However, Mr. François Provost clearly knows this, but from his words, he can still hear that he is still optimistic about the prospects of China's electric vehicle market.

"China's electric vehicle market is not easy at the moment because subsidies are decreasing. Despite this, we are still very optimistic about the market prospects. China is the world's largest electric vehicle market and technology is constantly being updated." François Provost said.

Shifting his attention to the field of light commercial vehicles, François Provost believes that the current market share of electric light commercial vehicles in China is relatively low, but this situation will change, and the market share will expand a lot in the future.

At the same time, he also added that, in contrast, China's passenger car market is very developed and in a leading position in the world, but there is still much room for improvement in the level of commercial vehicles. And we are very confident that we can make great progress in the light commercial vehicle market and make our products more modern.

When we asked when this goal could be achieved, François Provost said: "This is a process of continuous efforts. Despite this, we are very confident. We believe that China's light commercial vehicle market will undergo drastic changes in the next five years."

In order to achieve the above goals, the Renault Group has made the empowerment of the Jinbei brand its top priority, and will start with design, technology, and quality to make this brand with more than 30 years of history radiate new vitality.

François Provost said: "We believe that in the light commercial vehicle market, there are many competing companies. China's light commercial vehicle market is developing very fast. We believe that there are many opportunities in this area, and now the market is recovering quickly, and an old brand is revitalized. It has a greater chance of success than promoting a new brand."

In the domestic light commercial vehicle market, Jinbei can be said to be a well-known brand with a sufficiently deep market recognition and user base. Therefore, it is obviously one of the safest and most efficient ways to use the mature Jinbei brand to expand the product business of the joint venture.

As for Renault Brilliance Jinbei, the main task at this stage is to further improve its small and medium-sized commercial vehicle products, and to comprehensively enhance its market competitiveness by introducing Renault Group’s electrification technology, manufacturing standards and quality management system.

It is understood that Renault Brilliance Jinbei is currently upgrading its production base in Shenyang and has invested heavily in the construction of a modern paint shop. In addition, a set of "multi-model co-line flexible production" model will be introduced starting next year, that is, different models can be assembled on the same production line at the same time, further improving the efficiency of the production line and helping to ensure uniform high-standard quality control.

Mr. François Provost has high expectations for China's electric vehicle market and light commercial vehicle market, and he is confident in the future development of the Renault Brilliance Jinbei. After comprehensive innovations in design, technology and quality, what surprises can the revitalized Jinbei brand bring us? Let us wait and see.