The Volkswagen Group is one of the first and most successful international partners in China’s automobile industry, growing alongside it for four decades.
The company’s success story began in 1978 when the Volkswagen Group first started to engage with its Chinese counterparts. In 1984, SAIC Volkswagen Corporation Ltd., Volkswagen Group’s first joint venture in China, was founded in Shanghai, followed by FAW-Volkswagen Corporation Ltd. in 1991. Then, in 2017, the Group launched Volkswagen (Anhui) Automotive Company Limited, with a mission to manufacture NEVs in China, for China. Shortly, thereafter, in 2021, the Audi FAW NEV Company was incorporated, focusing on the manufacture of luxury NEVs in China. In 2023, Volkswagen China Technology Company (VCTC), the biggest R&D center of the group outside Germany and the only one focused exclusively on ICV transformation, was established. VCTC enables the Group to fully integrate itself into China's industrial ecosystem and to customize products even faster to meet the needs of Chinese customers.
Volkswagen Group China’s business scope includes the production, sales and services of vehicles and parts, such as engines and transmissions. The Group is represented by many auto brands in all segments, including Volkswagen Passenger Cars Brand, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, Audi, ŠKODA, JETTA, Porsche, Bentley, Lamborghini, and Ducati, etc.
Since entering the Chinese market, the Volkswagen Group has taken a leading market position, and with its joint venture partners it delivered over 3.23 million vehicles in Chinese Mainland and Hong Kong in 2023.
As the automotive industry shifts towards the era of Intelligent Connected Vehicles (ICV), the Group continues to consistently pursue strategic investment planning to further increase competitiveness, expand its activities in the most attractive growth markets and strengthen the entire product portfolio. In China, Volkswagen Group will continue to consistently pursue localisation in line with the strong “in China for China” approach, driving development speed to get intelligent technologies into the cars of the Group’s brands even faster and steadily ramping up the ICV portfolio. In order to safeguard the strategic measures and investments, the Group is further optimizing economic structures while providing cost competitive products to the Chinese customers. Volkswagen Group has a clear product roadmap in place: The Group brands will offer more than 30 BEVs by 2030.
Volkswagen Group China has an extensive footprint in China. It has opened plants in Shanghai, Changchun, Dalian, Nanjing, Yizheng, Chengdu, Foshan, Ningbo, Changsha, Urumqi, Qingdao, Tianjin, and Hefei. It currently manufactures vehicles and components at 39 plants in China. Its MEB plants in Anting, Foshan, and Hefei focus on the production of pure electric cars.
As of the end of 2023, Volkswagen Group China has over 90,000 employees in China, including those in its joint ventures.
Volkswagen Group China has always strived to be China’s most trustworthy auto partner. It not only provides high-quality products and services to consumers but also sees China’s sustainable development as one of its key responsibilities. The Group has developed three strategic areas within its CSR framework, including a low-carbon future, education, and economic empowerment. The Group is committed to operating responsibly and contributing to a green future in China.
By 2050, the Volkswagen Group aims to be fully net carbon neutral globally and is leading efforts through its goTOzero initiative.
The Volkswagen Group is accelerating its transformation into a software-oriented company. By continuing to bring the most advanced and environmentally sound technologies and products to China, as well as providing professional services to satisfy all customers, the Volkswagen Group is driving toward a sustainable future for China’s automobile industry.