BAIC's electric Arcfox to see sales sextuple in 2022

BAIC Bluepark's premium marque Arcfox is expected to see its sales reach 40,000 units, up from 6,000 units in 2021, said senior executives at the Shanghai-listed subsidiary of State-owned BAIC Group.

The ambition for this year and its structural adjustments done in 2021 have driven the price of the company's shares to a limit up on Monday.

If Arcfox can hit the sales target, it is likely to further drive the carmaker's business recovery, said analysts.

BAIC Bluepark, which owns Arcfox and Beijing marques, saw its operating revenue hit 8.70 billion yuan ($1.37 billion) last year, up 64.95 percent year-on-year, according to its financial statements released on Saturday.

Its net loss attributable to shareholders was 5.24 billion yuan, 1.24 billion less than in 2020. Its cash flow in the year stood at 4.98 billion yuan.

Arcfox now has two models in the market. A Huawei Inside version, which is powered by the technology giant's chips and autonomous driving solution, is to boost drive Arcfox sales this year, said Dai Kangwei, president of BAIC Bluepark.

She said its sales surge will bring BAIC Bluepark's total deliveries to 100,000 units this year.

The Beijing marque, which produces and sells more affordable gasoline and electric vehicles, is expected to see its sales reach 60,000 units.

Dai said the company will launch two sub-compact Arcfox models in 2023, which will further enrich the marque's lineup. They are based on the platform the company has developed with Canadian auto supplier Magna.

"Now we are launching one model every six months or even less. We can develop more models on this platform," said Dai.

Last year, it spent 1.21 billion yuan in research and development, up 24.14 percent year-on-year, to sharpen its technological competitive edge.

Arcfox President Wang Qiufeng said the brand's sales network is growing fast, with the total number of dealerships to reach 186 by the end of this year, up from 86 in 2021.

Wang said more and more car buyers are turning their back on gasoline vehicles, with seven major cities seeing electric cars and plug-in hybrids accounting for over 16 percent of total vehicle deliveries last year.

China sold 3.5 million electric cars and plug-in hybrids in 2021, up 160 percent year-on-year, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

The association estimated their deliveries to grow further to reach 5.5 million this year.

lifusheng@chinadaily.com.cn