The dualism between Europe and China in the automotive field is taking on increasingly important contours as time passes. And according to Luke De Meo, CEO of Renault, the year that has just ended is the one in which the Asian country established itself as the new giant of the automotive industry. AND Europe? Losanga's number one now talks about the challenges, those that must necessarily be overcome if we want to save a sector worth 13 million jobs.
Too much pressure
The issues of environmental impact, the stop to internal combustion engines starting from 2035, the development of safety technology and the cost of vehicles are creating considerable pressure on the entire European car industry, in the face of regulations That “they multiply with results that are sometimes opposite to what we would like”, the words of De Meo reported by Ansa. The Italian manager then points out: “In the space of twenty years, the average European car has become 60% heavier and costs 50% more. At the same time, the number of construction jobs has declined, by as much as 40% in some countries.”
Ever older car fleet
What remains to be done is to coincide the issue of decarbonisation of the fleet in circulation with the accessibility from an economic point of view of the so-called green cars. “Unfortunately for us, the most expensive cars are also the ones we buy the least – specifies De Meo – This means making our old polluting wrecks last longer: the result is that the average age of the fleet circulating in Europe went from 7 to 12 years“. Electric vehicles, software, mobility services, circular economy: there are many according to the number one of Renault i cornerstones that manufacturers must pay attention to in developing their business activities, which is not an easy task.
The issue of volatility
Also because all this happens in a great context volatility. From this point of view De Meo brings up the example of batteries: “Even billion-dollar investments in Gigafactories can be called into question overnight by changes in the chemistry to be used”. But the same can be done with raw materials, just think about “when the price of lithium increases 12 times and then halves within 3 years”. Or again, and this is perhaps the most grotesque, with the regulations, one above all the new Euro 7, recently subject to postponements over time. “These fluctuations are associated with a radical consequence – explains De Meo – For the automotive industry, the age-old mantra based on scale and efficiency overlaps with a new must: innovation and strategic agility. These are the elements that car manufacturers must now place at the center of their policies.”
Between China and Europe
The last topic addressed by Renault's number one concerns electric cars and batteries, in all respects the future of the automotive sector. From this point of view the Italian manager's position seems clear: “The Chinese control 75% of global battery production, percentage reaching up to 90% when it comes to lithium refining. To this first imbalance is added a second, which is even more serious: compared to the United States, which massively incentivises their industry, and compared to the Chinese, which organize it through plans, the Europeans in fact churn out regulations that show they have little coherence, struggling to address challenges holistically. To face the future coherently, it is our responsibility to invent business models suitable for new scenariosbut also investing in new technologies and proposing commercial offers that take up the challenge of accessible and sustainable mobility”.
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