Polestar may use a US factory to sell cars in Europe due to the increased tension between the EU and China

China-backed Swedish electric vehicle (EV) maker Polestar Automotive is preparing to shift production of cars it plans to sell in Europe from China to its US plant due to rising geopolitical tensions, its CEO said.

Asked how Polestar is preparing for a European investigation into Chinese-made EVs, which could lead to higher tariffs, Thomas Ingenlath said the manufacturer was studying the idea of ​​exporting the Polestar 3 made in South Carolina to the European Union.

Polestar builds most of its cars in the Chinese cities of Chengdu and Taizhou. It started production in South Carolina this year and plans to build a factory in South Korea.

It was founded by Swedish company Volvo Cars and Chinese company Geely, but Volvo sold most of its shares to shareholders, including Geely, after it announced in February that it would stop funding the company.

Volvo Cars is mostly owned by Geely.

The export efforts of Chinese electric car makers have come under scrutiny in recent months in Europe and the United States, which accuse China of over-exporting its capacity.

In October, the European Commission began investigating whether cheap EVs made in China were unfairly benefiting from government subsidies. China has called the investigation a safeguard.

In an interview on Tuesday evening, Mr. Ingenlath said this made the calculations of production costs “complicated.”

“We’re not really sure because obviously we don’t know where the investigation is going,” he said.

So Polestar is preparing as much as possible, said Mr. Ingenlath.

“We have accelerated the establishment of a global brand and manufacturing.

Analysts said the company’s shareholder shakeup highlights the growing challenges facing electric car startups as sales growth slows and cash losses worsen.

Geely and the private investment company owned by Geely founder Eric Li now own 69% of Polestar, while Volvo Cars’ stake fell from 49% to 18%.

Mr. Ingenlath said he does not expect the change in ownership to affect the automaker’s day-to-day operations.

Polestar delivered 54,600 vehicles worldwide in 2024 and aims to deliver 155,000 to 165,000 vehicles in 2025. It recorded a 40 percent drop in deliveries in the first quarter, but expects deliveries of its Polestar 3 and 4 luxury SUVs to pick up this year. will reduce. .

Mr. Ingenlath said the automaker is targeting a sales split of 40 percent in Europe, 30 percent in the United States and 30 percent in the Asia-Pacific region. (Reporting by Beijing Newsroom; Editing by Christopher Cushing)