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| Geely Zeker electric car targets Tesla |
Geely, the parent company of Geely Volvo in China, has announced the creation of a new electric vehicle technology and solutions company called Zeekr.
Geely is the largest privately owned automaker in China and is said to be investing $ 300 million in the new joint venture.
Zeekr is the latest in a number of Geely offerings including satellites, drones, trucks, and partnerships with big companies like Baidu, Tencent, and Foxconn.
Geely said: Although the company has not revealed any details or specifications, it is still planning to launch the first Zeekr-branded car in the third quarter of 2021.
Zeekr could enter the high-end market, allowing Geely to compete directly with Mercedes, which is also investing in this area.
According to Reuters, these cars are based on an open source chassis called SEA. The goal of the brand is to bring a new electric vehicle to the market every year for the next five years.
The Zeekr user experience description includes Tesla's direct sales strategy and Tesla transportation and service products.
According to Geely, Zeekr is creating a new ecosystem dedicated to fully integrating users into a new super ecosystem that fully meets user needs through innovation as the standard way of sales and service.
At a press conference, Geely said the decision to launch the new brand is in line with the increasing demand for electric cars in China and other markets around the world.
Zeekr joined Volvo, Polestar will switch to fully electric cars in 2030, and Polestar has just started introducing the Polestar 2 and Lynk & Co, the latter focusing on car sharing rather than ownership.
Geely also owns approximately 10% of Daimler, the parent company of Mercedes, which plans to raise $ 2.93 billion by selling public shares in the Shanghai Star market.
Although NIO sells electric cars at higher prices, Chinese manufacturers are still competing in the entry and mass market categories.