BEIJING: Oliver Blume, chief executive officer of Volkswagen Group, says China has emerged as the epicentre of the automotive industry’s future.

He made the remarks last Friday at the 2024 World New Energy Vehicle Congress held in Haikou in Hainan province.

Volkswagen is celebrating its 40th anniversary in China, its largest market around the world.

“Over the past four decades, we take great pride in having become an integral part of Chinese life and in shaping the development of the Chinese automotive industry,” he said.

Blume said its success lies in cooperation with local Chinese companies including FAW and SAIC.

Now the German carmaker has 50 million customers, almost 40 factories and 90,000 employees in China.

Looking forward, he said the company has made key strategic decisions and defined its Target Picture 2030, with a clear ambition to be the number one international car company in China.

One key element of Volkswagen’s strategy is a consistent implementation of its “in China, for China” approach, he added.

“In doing so, we are committed to becoming an even more integral part of the Chinese local industry ecosystem,” said Blume.

As part of this approach, Volkswagen had said in the earlier part of the year that expanding its own development capacities and forming strong partnerships with local tech-companies and original equipment manufacturers to accelerate to “China speed” was crucial.

The Volkswagen Group, which also includes Audi and Porsche, plans to launch 40 new models over the next three years and have a line-up of 30 electric vehicles by 2030, he had earlier said.

 - China Daily