MG could import electric cars from Thailand into the EU
Although MG has been considering building its own car plant in Europe since at least the summer of 2023, such plans are apparently still not ready to be finalised. The EU’s special tariffs for the import of electric cars from China come at an inopportune time. All of the electric cars that SAIC/MG imports into the EU will be subject to a special duty of 36.3 per cent in future, on top of the regular duty of ten per cent. In other words, the EU wants to impose a total of 46.3 per cent duty on imported MGs in future – a surcharge that will make the cars uncompetitive with other brands.
SAIC/MG is now considering exporting electric cars from Thailand to the EU. The MG4 has been rolling off the production line at a plant in the province of Chonburi since November 2023. SAIC manager Suroj Sangsnit told Thai media last week that the high import duties and the obligation to disclose all technologies used in the import documents are increasingly forcing Chinese manufacturers to relocate their production facilities abroad.
But even exporting from Thailand will not be so easy. In such a case, SAIC/MG must ensure that 40 per cent of the components used come from Thailand. Otherwise, the EU would not classify the vehicle as Thai. In addition, Thailand has never exported cars to Europe before, as there is no trade agreement between the two regions. “It is estimated that Thailand will face import duties of 10-20% if it starts exporting EVs to Europe,” said Sangsnit.
The SAIC manager hopes that the Thai government will finalise negotiations on a free trade agreement with the European Union by the end of the year, which would open the doors to EU markets for Thai manufacturers of electric vehicles.
However, SAIC only builds the MG4 in Thailand, which is the brand’s best-selling model in Europe. The other model series, such as the MG ZS SUV, the larger Marvel R, or the MG5 electric estate, are all built in China. The Thailand trick would probably not work for these models.
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