Kelly-Post 9- China Green Autos

I found this article on CNBC today.

China Will Dominate Green Auto Market: Daimler CEO


Published: Tuesday, 2 Mar 2010 7:38 AM ET
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By: Robin KnightCNBC Associate Web Producer

China's expanding auto market will be the first to embrace alternative fuels, shunning the West's dependence on gasoline, Dieter Zetsche, CEO of Daimler, told CNBC Tuesday.
AP

Dieter Zetsche, CEO of Daimler

"China knows that they can't go for mass individual transportation based on gasoline. Just by the number of people living in China there is not enough oil," Zetsche said.

"So they are absolutely determined to go for the next technology and therefore China is the perfect market to make this transformation happen," he added.

The German automaker unveiled its strategy to make cleaner cars for China as it signed a deal with BYD Monday. The Chinese car and battery maker, which has the backing of billionaire investor Warren Buffett, will provide batteries for Daimler cars.

The Daimler and BYD tie will create a new auto brand for the growing Chinese market that is built and tested within China, Daimler said. The move also marks a major change in the race for tapping the green auto market, according to Zetsche.

"The combination of BYD and Daimler is the best you can think of to execute in this strategy," he said.

Numerous automakers are clamoring to gain market share in Asia due to its potential for growth, including luxury brand Rolls Royce. CEO Tom Purves told CNBC that Asia remains the growth market for the high-end automotive industry and he is seeing a strong demand pickup in the region.

Zetsche described the growth in China as "tremendous" and claims Daimler has "unbelievable momentum, more than anyone else in this fast-growing market."

Zetsche also expressed optimism about future auto sales growth in the U.S.

"We do expect that there will be growth for the North American market … which obviously comes from a lower level (of) growth, but we are confident that this will be sustainable," he said.
Western automakers will also face competition from their Asian counterparts on their home turf as well as globally, Zetsche pointed out.

"Definitely the Chinese auto makers will become global players, will be competitive. But just as their Japanese or Korean partners in other countries, they will start in volume segments and will take quite some time before they become competitive in the premium segments," he said.
In contrast to the growth prospects for Asian auto demand, the outlook for the European market is bleak in 2010, Nick Reilly, CEO of Opel, told CNBC