Paris [France], July 9: The statement was made by the head of the Renault group (France) in the context of China imposing restrictions on exports of gallium and germanium, two important metals in the production of electric vehicles.
Reuters news agency on July 9, quoted the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Renault (France) Jean-Dominique Senard as warning that a "China storm" is now engulfing Europe's burgeoning electric vehicle (EV) sector . The statement comes as the world's second-largest economy holds the main raw materials for the production of zero-emission car batteries.
"When I talk about a Chinese storm, I'm talking about the strong pressure now on importing Chinese (electric) vehicles into Europe," Senard said at a technology conference in Ho Chi Minh City. Aix-en-Provence (France) on July 8.
According to Mr. Senard, Europe has the capacity to produce electric vehicles, but is struggling to secure the supply. He added that China's electric vehicle industry and raw material supply chain are the result of years of investments that cost billions of euros.
Bloomberg quoted Senard as saying that the risk of China cutting off the supply of raw materials was what kept him "up all night". "It's a big strategic problem. We could fall into chaos overnight, and no one anticipated this," he added, warning the European Union had not hit the mark. price impact from the old continent's dependence on Chinese metals.
China's export restrictions are likely to cause more disruptions to global supply chains. Therefore, Europe is rushing to find alternatives in the worst case. Mr. Senard said the development of alternative fuels, such as synthetic electronics and hydrogen, would be crucial in the event of sudden battery shortages due to scarcity of raw materials.
Senard's comments alluded to China's imposition this week of restrictions on exports of gallium and germanium, two metals important to the semiconductor, telecommunications and electric vehicle industries. Beijing's decision is said to be China's new tit-for-tat in its technology war with the US.
China is the dominant global producer of gallium and germanium exports, and accounts for 94% of the world's gallium production, according to statistics from Britain's Center for Important Minerals.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
