(Yicai) Dec. 30 -- Changan Automobile will make its official entry into the European market in 2025 as part of the Chinese state-backed auto manufacturer’s ambitious plans for overseas expansion, the company chairman said at a conference yesterday.

Changan will also set up a Brazilian unit in South America next year, and take its three marques, Changan, Deepal and Avatr, to the Middle East, Zhu Huarong said. The Chongqing-based company will put its plant in Rayong, Thailand into operation, and open another factory for knocked-down vehicles in the Commonwealth of the Independent States.

Changan has already been laying the ground for its entry into Europe. This year, Changan set up a German subsidiary that will be responsible for sales, marketing, customer services, and in-depth market insights in the region. Changan said in a mid-year report to investors that it is studying building production bases in Europe and is planning to sell six NEV models in the European market by 2027.

Next year, Changan aims to sell three million cars with a revenue target of CNY300 billion (USD41.1 billion), Zhu said. One million of these will be overseas sales and one million will be new energy vehicles. By 2030, sales should reach five million units, of which 3.5 million autos will be electric cars and 30 percent will be foreign sales.

China's auto sales should reach 32 million units next year and 35 million by 2030, Zhu said. In terms of the global auto industry, worldwide car sales are likely to approach 100 million units next year and 108 million by 2030.

The NEV penetration rate in China is expected to be 47.2 percent this year and 80 percent by 2030, Zhu said. In the next three to five years, electric vehicles and XEVs, which stands for ‘electric vehicles and their extended variants,’ will each make up 40 percent of the market, with the rest being cars with internal combustions.

China's auto exports are set to reach six million units this year and are likely to top 6.8 million units next year. Changan's sales should climb 5.1 percent this year from the year before to 2.7 million autos. Overseas sales are expected to jump 47.9 percent to 530,000 units, he said.

Moving the industrial chain overseas is becoming a general trend, with global resource integration becoming a certainty, Zhu said. He also talked about trends in areas such as the low-altitude economy, brand propagation and competitive landscapes.

Editor: Kim Taylor