Carney-Xi deal paves way for Geely to ship Lotus electric vehicles to Canada

By Promit Mukherjee and Maria Cheng

Ottawa — Geely Holding Group’s Lotus-branded electric vehicles will arrive in Canada in July under an agreement between Prime Minister Mark Carney and Chinese President Xi Jinping, Chinese Ambassador to Canada Wang Di said Friday.

They will be the first Chinese-owned and manufactured vehicles to be sold under a deal that allows up to 49,000 Chinese electric vehicles to enter Canada each year at a reduced duty rate, as Carney attempts to diversify Canada’s trade away from the United States.

“Geely electric vehicles will arrive in Canada next month and they will hold a ceremony when the cars are delivered to Montreal,” Wang said.

Lotus Cars did not respond to a request for comment.

Canada’s Department of International Affairs said it would not comment on specific shipments due to commercial confidentiality concerns.

Wang said other Chinese brands, such as Chery and BYD, are coordinating with Canadian government agencies to complete steps before they can ship to Canada. Some cars arrived early so companies could test them in Canadian conditions, Canadian officials have said previously.

“I hope that in the fall of this year, the other genuine Chinese brand electric vehicles will complete the procedures and enter the Canadian market,” Wang said through an interpreter. BYD Executive Vice President Stella Li recently said the company would likely begin sales next year. The American company Tesla has already imported vehicles made in China into Canada.

The country also aims to attract joint ventures and investments in the electric vehicle supply chain.

Wang said Chinese electric vehicle makers were interested in establishing joint ventures, but would first focus on increasing sales and assessing market demand.

Carney’s decision to allow Chinese imports of electric vehicles was criticized by some U.S. officials and lawmakers.

Canadian exports

During his visit to China in January, Carney also said Canada would seek to increase its exports to China by 50% by 2030. However, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said last month that exports could increase by 100%.

To double Canadian exports to China, they need to grow by almost 15% annually over the next five years, Wang said, adding that Canadian exports have already increased by 27.5% in the five months since Carney’s visit.

“As we continue to move forward, our economic and trade cooperation continues to unlock the potential of our economies and continues to take advantage of the complementarities we have. I think we can perhaps go beyond 100% and perhaps reach 200%,” he said.

Wang said Canada could supply nearly 22 million tonnes of crude oil to China annually, up from 15.5 million tonnes last year.

He said he saw “great potential” for China to purchase liquefied natural gas from Canada, without elaborating.

Wang said Canada, a major exporter of canola, peas and beef, supplies only 2% of China’s agricultural imports, highlighting the huge market Canada can tap into.

“As long as we stay on the right track, at the right pace, in the right direction, we will have great potential to increase our trade,” he said.

China reduced tariffs in March on some Canadian products, but left duties on canola oil at 100% and pork at 25%. Tariff relief on products like canola meal, peas and lobster expires at the end of the year, creating uncertainty for exporters.

Wang declined to say whether China would extend the tariff suspension or reduce tariffs on pork and canola oil.

“As long as both countries respect the principles of mutual respect, equality and reciprocity… there will be nothing we cannot resolve.”

But he warned that the Carney government must respect the principles of mutual respect, seek common ground and seek mutually beneficial outcomes.

“Whenever these principles are not respected, there will of course be a negative impact,” he said.