On July 4, the Supervisory Board of Volkswagen Group held a meeting and renewed the contract with Ralf Brandstaetter, a member of the Group's Board of Management and head of the China region, ahead of schedule. The new term is three years, until the summer of 2028.
Behrendt will serve as President and CEO of Volkswagen Group (China) from August 1, 2022, with full responsibility for business in China. According to the resolution of the Supervisory Board of Volkswagen Group, Behrendt's term of office was originally scheduled for 3 years and is scheduled to expire in 2025.
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A stable management team is crucial to the realization of Volkswagen Group's strategic goals. This personnel renewal reflects the Volkswagen Group's Supervisory Board's affirmation of the "In China, for China" strategy and its rapid progress. It also sends a firm signal to the group and its partners in China: Volkswagen Group will fully support the transformation direction of the Chinese region and continue to deepen its local layout.
In the past three years, Volkswagen Group has been pushing forward the reshaping of its business in China at full speed, with significant transformation results, laying the foundation for a large-scale product offensive. The joint venture period of SAIC Volkswagen has been extended to 2040 ahead of schedule. By 2030, SAIC Volkswagen will launch 18 new models. FAW-Volkswagen will also add 11 Volkswagen and Jetta brand models. In addition, Volkswagen Anhui will launch the new UNYX model from 2026. As a result, the product planning of the Volkswagen brand to 2030 has been fully completed.
It is worth mentioning that one of the core elements of the "In China, for China" strategy is to deeply integrate the group's R&D work into China's local smart electric travel ecosystem. On this development path, Volkswagen Group's pace is more determined than other multinational automakers. Specific measures include: Establishing a new innovation center "Volkswagen (China) Technology Co., Ltd." (VCTC) in Hefei, focusing on the research and development of smart electric vehicles. Establishing partnerships with local automakers and technology companies such as Xiaopeng, Horizon, Thundersoft and Guoxuan High-tech to promote product and technology development. Developing localized platforms with more technological advantages and price competitiveness for the Chinese market, including CMP (Compact Main Platform) and CSP (China Scalable Platform). Continue to strengthen independent R&D capabilities in the fields of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and electronic and electrical architecture, and create the CEA electronic and electrical architecture (China Electronic Architecture). Shorten the development cycle of new platforms and new models by 30% and achieve 40% cost optimization.
