When the famous Swedish automobile manufacturer Volvo, at that time after a break with Ford, was far from in the most in better shape, bought by the Chinese (Geely), many were not so much surprised as upset. Although, let me remind you, at that moment even hits like the XC90 and XC70 were already selling poorly. And the leitmotif was the idea that it definitely wouldn’t get worse, but the quality would need to be looked at.
The 11 billion dollars the Chinese invested in Volvo allowed the Swedes to simply throw out all the old drawings and create a new model line. The first sign, literally “with a bang” received in the markets of Europe and the USA, was the completely new XC90 - a new platform, new engines, everything new - even the concept of the car itself has changed, actively laying claim to the premium segment. And then came the update of the whole model line according to a new concept. S90, V90, V90 Cross Country- Volvo began to return to the world market. At the same time, changing the approach to the service, the structure dealer centers- well, it’s premium. Yes, 12 years of production of obsolete models still holds the stereotypes of many potential buyers, but...
And here's the latest news - Volvo is moving the production of many models to China - the homeland of the parent company. No, the plant in Gothenburg is not closing, it’s just that production volumes are growing, and in Sweden it’s a little expensive to increase production capacity. Well, that was expected, actually...
Volvo is significantly increasing its production capacity in China. Recently it was announced that production premium sedan The S90 will be transferred from Sweden to Volvo's own plant in Daqing, China. Both standard and long versions will be produced in Daqing and exported to all markets. The Volvo S90 will be the most prestigious car in the premium segment produced in this moment in China.

The manufacturer also announced that the upcoming new generation S60 will also be produced in China, at the Chengdu plant, and the production of the soon-to-be expected new generation 40 series will be located at the Luqiao plant, south of Shanghai, as well as in Ghent (Belgium). . Currently, the Swedish company is completely Chinese-owned, produces the 90 and 60 series cars at its plant in Gothenburg, Sweden.

"With three factories and each model on a separate line, Volvo creates an efficient production structure that provides excellent prospects for further growth," said CEO Volvo Cars, Hakan Samuelson.

The Luqiao plant is owned by Volvo's parent company, Zhejiang Geely Holdings. It will also produce cars for the new car brand LYNK & CO. Volvo also builds new plant near the city of Ridgeville (South Carolina) for the production of automobiles at American market. It is planned to launch in 2018.

By the way, Volvo recently showed a luxury version of the S90 sedan - the S90 Excellence, the official presentation of which will take place at the Guangzhou Motor Show in November. This sedan includes personal driver and the front passenger seat was replaced by the so-called “Lounge Console,” which is both a computer and a multimedia center.

Naturally, thanks to close cooperation with Apple in recent years, the iMac will be the basis for this device.

It also features an almost horizontal folding back seat, footrests, storage space for a spare set of clothes and shoes, and a minibar with champagne.

largest in history Chinese auto industry acquisition: the Chinese concern Geely buys from American Ford Swedish company Volvo. The agreement was signed yesterday in Gothenburg, in the presence of Chinese Vice-President Xi Jinping, who arrived in Sweden on an official visit in connection with the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, and Swedish Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Industry Maud Olofsson. Transaction value: $1.8 billion, all funds necessary for the acquisition have already been received, at the same time Geely has also prepared the capital necessary for further development produced by Volvo cars.

Swedish media reports emphasize that “the agreement provides for the preservation of Volvo’s independence, the continuation of its commercial plans and further development.” Upon completion of the transaction, the company's headquarters will remain in Gothenburg, and Geely will also retain Volvo's existing factories in Sweden and Belgium. In addition, the new owner expects to build a Volvo plant in China “to saturate the company’s cars in the Chinese market.” The agreement states that Geely will maintain good relations with Volvo workers, its trade unions, sales agencies, and especially consumers. “Volvo will be run by Volvo management. The company will be given independence from a strategic perspective. It will operate according to its own business plan. We are committed to maintaining the brand's identity and view Volvo as a Swedish company with strong Scandinavian traditions,” says Geely Chairman Li Shufu.

Ford has wanted to sell Volvo, along with several other assets, since 2008, when both the company and many of its competitors, both in the United States and around the world, faced serious financial problems. “The main goal of the deal is to find a new owner who shares Ford’s opinion about the future of Volvo. We needed to find a new owner who could grow the business and at the same time care deeply about the unique characteristics of the Swedish brand. And who also treats the company's employees and the community in which we operate responsibly. We have found, and I am pleased to announce, such an owner in the person of Geely,” says Ford vice president Lewis Booth.

Volvo was acquired by Ford in 1999 for $6.5 billion. In total, Volvo employs 22 thousand people in the world, of which 16 thousand are in Sweden. Now the Swedish manufacturer assembles about 300 thousand cars a year - the new plant in China should make the same amount. The unions gave final consent to sign the agreement only last Saturday, after a meeting with Li Shufu and his explanations about the plans of the new management for the future. “We are pleased that we have entered into by Ford a treaty that allows us to preserve and strengthen our heritage famous brand Volvo. The brand will remain true to its core values ​​of safety and modern Scandinavian design,” said Li Shufu. According to him, the strategic goal Chinese corporation– to achieve production of 2 million cars per year by 2015. The acquisition of a well-known brand raises the prestige of the Chinese automobile industry. In addition, Volvo will open a more expensive segment for manufacturers from the Middle Kingdom European market and its sales network.

It looks like this deal will be the biggest financial event of the year in automotive industry after the PSA concern the company's European assets General Motors. And not only in the automotive industry. Geely company announced the acquisition of an 8.2% stake in the Swedish concern AB Volvo, better known as the Volvo Group. The purchase agreement was concluded with the Swedish firm Cevian Capital, which still owned the stake. As a result, the Chinese company will become the largest single Volvo shareholder Group and will receive the largest sixth part (15.6%) of votes on the board of the concern.

The transaction amount has not been officially disclosed, but experts estimate it at approximately $3.8 billion. The fact is that the Volvo Group is a large international concern which includes divisions for the production of trucks, buses, construction equipment, ship and industrial engines. The group has bought up dozens of competing companies, it has own factories in most countries of the world. For example, the department Volvo Trucks belong to freight companies, and ( ex-Nissan Diesel), the Volvo Bus group has acquired many bus brands, including the North American Prevost and Blue Bird, and the Volvo division has also made many acquisitions Construction Equipment. The Volvo group also has its own factories in Russia: sites in the Kaluga region produce trucks and excavators.

The Swedish concern got rid of the passenger division of Volvo Cars back in 1999: first it became the property of Ford, and after not very successful experiments with model range The Americans sold it in 2010 to the Geely holding. In light of the new deal, a reunification of the companies appears to be in the cards under Li Shufu, the owner of the Chinese firm.

Let us recall that Volvo Cars became Geely’s first and largest foreign asset to date. Although with the rise of the Swedish mark, things are going Chinese owners gradually went uphill. Over the past five years, the private holding Geely has managed to enter the top five leaders in the Chinese automotive market, buy a manufacturer of British cabs, a Malaysian car company and an American developer of flying cars. And over the past year, the holding has also created two new automobile brand- And . However, outside the passenger car sector, Geely's assets have so far only included the small truck company Yuancheng.

Now everything can change. With the acquisition of the largest stake in AB Volvo, the Chinese holding becomes a major international concern. What, however, are circumstances pushing Li Shufu to do: the Chinese Communist Party not so long ago announced its desire to unite the three largest state automobile concern- FAW, Dongfeng and Changan. This is a complex and long process, but the first mergers of small divisions have already begun, and as a result of the merger, a huge and powerful conglomerate can appear on the scene, with which others can compete Chinese manufacturers It will be oh so difficult.

The profits of the successful Swedish group will help Geely: experts estimate Cevian Capital's income over the 11 years of ownership of the AB Volvo stake at two billion euros. However, the parties have so far announced only agreement in principle. The counterparties may be Nomura International and Barclays Capital Securities: after the transaction is approved by the antimonopoly authorities, they will buy out shares owned by Cevian Capital and sell them to the Geely holding. This will happen, of course no earlier than next year.

Russian sales of Volvo this year, like those of other car brands, still leave much to be desired: following the collapse of the market, there are significantly fewer buyers in car dealerships. Sales of the new flagship model XC90, which were supposed to begin in March, were eventually postponed and will only start now (the exact timing is still unknown). Along with a noticeable reduction in prices for the lineup, announced at the end of April, this should improve the company’s business in Russia. However, despite local Volvo problems, having passed into Chinese hands, demonstrates in last years more than decent results, managing to retain old clients and attract new ones.

In 2010, the Chinese didn’t just buy the first European brand they came across. They bought a company known primarily for security technology. This is exactly what Chinese car companies have had from the very beginning (and still do today) serious problems: Many cars were completely uncompetitive in terms of European or American standards.

Five years ago, the global economic crisis forced the American concern to get rid of excess assets, one of which was the Volvo passenger car division.

The Swedish manufacturer was making losses, and Ford did not want to invest in the company during the crisis. As a result, the Americans sold Volvo to Chinese auto giant Geely for $1.8 billion. At the same time, in 1999, Volvo cost Americans 3.5 times more expensive - $6.5 billion.

When Volvo passed into the hands of the Chinese, many auto experts and fans of the brand seriously expressed fears that Volvo would lose its image and that the Chinese, having taken advantage of Swedish technologies, would not invest heavily in it.

But new Volvo owner hastened to assure that the brand will be given independence in a strategic perspective and the opportunity to work according to its own business plan.

“Collaboration with the Swedish brand is primarily about safety technologies. Volvo has a very strong position in this aspect of the automotive industry,” Geely CEO Li Shufu said at the end of April. “In addition, we are now focused on research and development work to create a new modular platform CMA (for the production of C-class cars). The C-class sedan will go into production in 2017 and will become the first car on new platform For small-sized models CMA, common to Geely and Volvo. The successor to the Volvo V40 will receive the same platform.”

"Based on this modular architecture Volvo develops some products, and Geely develops others, its own,

— Shufu clarifies. - They have different directions and are completely different characteristics, corresponding to positioning in their segments.”

However, it is worth admitting that Volvo did not initially count on this format of cooperation. Shortly after the deal, the then CEO of Volvo clearly stated that there would be no technical cooperation with Geely is out of the question.

“We understand ourselves as part of a financial, not an industrial holding company, so we maintain independence, which is very important to us. Geely and I work in completely different areas automotive industry, which makes cooperation on a wide range of issues practically meaningless,” he said.

Well, a few years later the situation changed, and it is not difficult to guess that the Chinese still managed to impose their vision of mutual cooperation on the Swedes.

For those missing stars from the sky Geely purchase Volvo has opened access to unique technologies security and other developments. But at the same time, the deal allowed Geely to become the first Chinese car company, which expanded not only in the European and US markets, but also in developing countries, becoming a global brand.

At least these are the plans declared by Li Shufu, who is called the “Chinese Henry Ford.” Geely’s immediate plans are to begin exporting Swedish brand cars from factories in China to other countries. In addition to the United States, experts also name Russia among export destinations. Shipments will be made from a plant in Chengdu in southwest China.

The Swedish company also does not hide that it is quite pleased with the cooperation. Main criterion— growing global sales volume.

According to the head of Volvo in China, Lars Danielson, 2014 was one of the best years for Volvo Cars. “More than 466 thousand cars were sold, of all models,” Larson cites the data. —

Things were going well in Western Europe is also an important market for us. 56 thousand cars were sold in the USA. Overall sales were good, our profit increased by 17% and reached 2.2 million.

However, margins remain low.

There's context to keep in mind here. We invest a lot in new products. Doing the same thing that the entire industry is doing would be much easier and the profits would be different. But the plan is what it is.”

The Chinese market is Volvo's largest today, with its share reaching 17% of global sales last year. Sweden is in second place, the USA is in third with 12%. Next come the UK (about 9%) and the rest European countries — 7%.

“I don’t think that Volvo, having become the property of Geele, could have lost anything,” says the general director of Radio Strana, a well-known auto expert. — Quite the contrary: the brand retained all its positions.

Yes, they had big plans to develop the brand on Chinese market, but so far no noticeable results have actually been achieved.

Nevertheless, the fact that the Swedish brand is present in China, Europe, and the USA is already good. Here we can cite as an example the fate of another Swedish manufacturer, Saab, which simply went bankrupt and ceased to exist.”

According to the expert, when both companies announce joint technical developments, they are of a very specific nature.

“For Geely, the purchase of Volvo was shortest way to be received modern technologies automotive industry. In fact, they didn’t have any experience of their own. Therefore, speaking about joint developments two brands, you must understand that all technical base Only Europeans provide it, and the Chinese side provides financing. Therefore, it is quite logical that the joint technical center of the two companies is located in Sweden,” he noted.

As Denis Eremenko, general director of PodborAvto, notes, the perception of the brand Russian consumers hasn't changed since she came under the wing Chinese company. “If the build quality of cars, the design and positioning of the brand as a whole do not change, then the consumer does not think at all about who owns the brand,” Eremenko shared his opinion with Gazeta.Ru. - Purchase Chinese Volvo- just such a case, so in demand from outside Russian buyers this circumstance had no effect.”

The Volvo example is not the only one. On the Chinese account - purchase by Dongfeng Motor Group 14% stake in the struggling French concern PSA, acquisition of BAIC from Saab technologies. One cannot help but recall the failed deal to sell the Hummer brand to the Chinese. In addition, it recently became known that the Chinese state-owned chemical corporation ChemChina plans to acquire tire brand Pirelli for 7.1 billion euros.

But it’s not just the Chinese who use the same tactics. Indian has owned British Jaguar for several years now Land Rover and does everything to avoid being associated with the legendary premium brand among ordinary buyers.