Xpeng in Talks to Buy Volkswagen Plant in Europe

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Chinese carmaker Xpeng is reportedly in talks to buy a Volkswagen plant in Europe.

Elvis Cheng, XPeng’s executive director for Northeast Asia, revealed the discussions regarding the plant during a conference titled ‘Future of the Car’ held by the Financial Times.

According to Arena EV on Saturday (16/5), Cheng confirmed at the event that the company is actively in talks with Volkswagen to secure physical production space in Europe.

Cheng noted that some of Volkswagen’s plants are “somewhat old” and may not meet the strict technical requirements needed to build advanced modern electric vehicles.

If it fails to reach a suitable agreement to acquire the property from the German carmaker, which is reducing its production capacity, Xpeng is prepared to build a completely new factory from scratch.

Xpeng needs more space to build vehicles as its car sales increase in international markets.

During April 2026, the company exported 6,006 vehicles, an increase of 28 percent from the previous month and 62 percent compared to the same month in 2025.

In the first four months of 2026, the company shipped 17,563 electric vehicles abroad, a 55 percent increase year-on-year.

This increase in sales is pushing the company’s production lines to their maximum capacity.

The plant has been producing the G6 and G9 electric SUVs since September 2025, and workers completed the trial production of the new 2026 P7+ electric sedan there in January 2026.

Building cars in Europe would allow the company to avoid high EU import tariffs for Chinese-made electric vehicles, which can reach up to 35.5 percent.

The company’s competitor, BYD, is also seeking deals with Stellantis and other European companies to take over their vacant assembly lines.

In addition, BYD has already started building its factory in Hungary, which is expected to be operational this year, along with a 1 billion euro plant in Turkey scheduled to open at the end of December.