Geely aiming for stable growth amid intense market contest

Despite intense competition in China's auto market, Geely Holding Group is targeting stable growth and aims to reach 5 million sales by 2027 through strategic initiatives.

The Chinese automotive conglomerate delivered 3.34 million units in 2024, up 22 percent year-on-year. Its new energy vehicle sales reached 1.49 million, growing 52 percent compared with 2023.

To achieve its 2027 goal, Geely Holding Group is accelerating its brand integration efforts since it made the Taizhou Declaration in September.

The declaration is a strategic blueprint for the group to streamline its business, which will help it optimize industry chain layout, reduce costs and increase efficiency to stay competitive in the fast-evolving auto market.

Since September, it has integrated two auto groups: Geely Auto Group and Zeekr Technology Group.

The former includes brands Geely, Galaxy, Radar and LEVC, covering a range of sedan, SUV, MPV and off-road pickup models.

The latter group comprises Lynk & Co and Zeekr, which focuses on the luxury NEV market.

Geely Holding Group CEO Daniel Donghui Li said that the Taizhou Declaration marks a new phase of transformation for the company to tackle global competition amid industry changes.

In 2025, the group has set a target of 2.71 million units for the passenger car sector, which also includes brands like Geely, Volvo, Lotus and Polestar. It will mark a growth of 25 percent compared to 2024.

Specifically, the Geely Auto Group aims to sell 2 million vehicles, with 1.5 million being NEVs.

Zeekr Technology Group will aim to beat a sales target of 710,000 vehicles in 2025. The group expects to ramp up its annual production and sales volume to 1 million units over the next two years.

Gan Jiayue, CEO of Geely Auto Group, said the market competition will be more intense in 2025.

With the launch of two SUVs and three sedans, the Galaxy brand is expected to sell 1 million units this year.

On Jan 6, Geely unveiled the EM-i variants of its flagship models, the Galaxy L6 sedan and L7 SUV, in Harbin, Heilongjiang province, marking their kickoff.

Venturing overseas continues to be a pivotal move for Geely, Gan said. The company plans to set up more than 300 sales and service outlets this year in overseas markets.

By year-end, its overseas outlets will exceed 1,100, bolstering Geely's sales support capabilities.

Meanwhile, Geely will speed up overseas KD manufacturing in regions including Central Asia, Southeast Asia and Africa, to boost cost competitiveness.

By strengthening product lineups and sales channels abroad, Geely expects to exceed 15.6 percent growth in overseas markets by 2025.

Geely Auto Group exported 404,000 vehicles in 2024, up 53 percent year-on-year.

The company is expanding its range to include gasoline models, plug-in hybrids and electric vehicles, with emphasis also on methanol technology.

Its latest fifth-generation super methanol plug-in hybrid products, scheduled for release in the fourth quarter, are expected to cater to mainstream consumers.

As an official partner of the upcoming ninth Asian Winter Games in Harbin, Geely will provide 1,250 cars, including 350 methanol-hydrogen ones.

This will mark the first large-scale use of methanol-hydrogen vehicles to serve an international sporting event.

Geely's new energy commercial vehicle marque, Farizon, uses methanol as liquid hydrogen to replace traditional hydrogen fuel cell system, making charging more convenient and economical, especially in extreme cold weather.

The automaker has been involved in the methanol sector for two decades, transitioning from small-scale pilots to widespread use with nearly 40,000 units running over 20 billion kilometers.

By the end of 2024, China had built 519 methanol refueling stations in key regions and along important routes nationwide.

By 2027, the number of such stations is expected to reach 4,000 for convenient refueling.