"Boss, I have prepared all the materials, but I still don't quite understand them."
In the business car heading to the Shanghai City Government, He Xuan started chatting.
"What don't you understand?"
"Since we want to build a factory, why don't we choose a location in Jiangcheng? Whether it's government relations or preferential policies, it doesn't have to be so troublesome, and Jiangcheng is also an old automobile industry base, isn't it good?"
He Xuan blinked his smart eyes with a puzzled look on his face.
"Different."
Gu Yun adjusted the seat back, opened the tablet and explained.
"As one of the most developed cities in China, Shanghai has complete infrastructure and transportation networks, which is very important for our location selection and supply chain management. Shanghai's transportation convenience and logistics advantages can provide more efficient production
and delivery environment.”
"And even if we have good government relations in Jiangcheng, we can only choose to build a factory in Shanghai, which has the advantages of electric vehicle technology and new energy vehicle industry, to better utilize local technical talents and industrial resources."
As one of the important bases of China's traditional automobile manufacturing industry, Jiangcheng has rich automobile industry resources and manufacturing experience.
Over the past few decades, Jiangcheng has accumulated a strong foundation in automobile manufacturing and related supply chains, and has competitive advantages in automobile parts, vehicle manufacturing, research and development and other fields.
Although Jiangcheng is a domestic automobile manufacturing base, as an innovative company focusing on new energy vehicles, it will comprehensively consider multiple factors when choosing a location to build a factory, including market demand, policy support, infrastructure, human resources, etc.
Therefore, in terms of Tesla's strategic needs, Gu Yun had no choice but to go to Shanghai, the largest consumer market, technological innovation center and economic center in the country.
"All right."
He Xuan nodded and accepted.
"The follow-up may have to be done here. If the negotiation is completed, we will have to travel to many places. For project approval, we need to contact the National Development and Reform Commission, for land planning, we need to ask the Natural Resources Bureau, for the process, we need to contact the Market Supervision Bureau, and for evaluation, we need to contact the Environmental Protection Bureau...
..."
The assistant muttered a few words to himself, raised his neck, and let out a long sigh at the roof of the car.
Although I knew I would be busy with work after the new year, who would have thought that on the first day after returning to my boss, there would be so many trivial things to be uploaded and handed down!
...
The Shanghai Municipal Government is located in the center of the modern city, with a bustling and lively surrounding environment.
The exterior design of the administrative building is exquisite, with a simple and elegant style. The modern glass curtain wall transmits sunlight, and it is surrounded by green trees and blooming flowers and plants, making it comfortable and pleasant.
"At such a young age, Mr. Gu has such a deep understanding of the new energy vehicle industry development plans and policies, which is rare."
Zhou Darong, the main leader of the government department, warmly received Gu Yun and assistant He Xuan.
Slightly different from Jiangcheng's down-to-earth leader, Gu Yun was invited into a spacious conference room with elegant carpets on the floor, creating a noble and formal atmosphere.
Regardless of whether he has something to ask for or not, Mr. Gu from the Paradise Group is now qualified to chat and laugh with most leaders.
"We also want to implement the national strategy of developing new energy vehicles. Our original intention is to promote the healthy and rapid development of the new energy vehicle industry."
Gu Yun replied with a smile.
It was only halfway through a cup of hot tea that the two of them chatted about policies, but it felt like they had hit it off.
This year is a critical year for the government to vigorously support new energy vehicles.
Not only has the "Notice on Issuing the Development Plan for the Energy-Saving and New Energy Vehicle Industry" been issued, the upper levels have also issued detailed guidance to the lower levels in order to speed up the promotion and application of new energy vehicles.
All in all, it is necessary to combine market leadership and government support to establish a long-term and stable new energy vehicle development policy system, create a good development environment, and accelerate the cultivation of the new energy market.
"Xiao Gu does have a vision. New energy vehicles are the future. This is what many leaders have thought about."
Zhou Darong smiled and pointed to the notebook in his hand and began to tell stories about the past.
In fact, as early as 2000, someone had already written to senior management, suggesting the development of new energy vehicles in order to achieve leapfrog development of the domestic automobile industry.
The history of China's automobile industry is as worrying as the national football team.
In the 1970s, the Hongqi car carrying Romanian leader Ceausekus crashed into the roadside when the brakes failed on a downhill slope. The scene was very embarrassing for a time.
On the other hand, "technology for market" has been falsified, and the domestic manufacturing level of the three core components of fuel vehicles: engine, gearbox, and chassis is still far behind.
In contrast, the three cores of new energy vehicles are batteries, motors, and electronic controls. China has certain advantages in the field of electronics manufacturing, and there is no obvious gap with automotive powers such as the United States, Japan, and Germany.
The leadership believes that concentrating on new energy vehicles is equivalent to bringing the automotive powers back to the same starting line, greatly increasing the probability of overtaking in corners.
This petition was affirmed by the central government, and basic research breakthroughs and industry-university-research projects on the three core technologies of electric vehicles were quickly launched.
But electric cars at that time were still of the “whoever buys them will be a fool” variety.
In 2003, BYD bought 77% of Qinchuan Automobile's shares and announced its entry into electric vehicle research and development. As a result, its stock price fell for three days in a row.
An American fund that holds as much as 60% of the shares even called and threatened to change its decision immediately or sell the stock.
On the other side of the world, electric cars have been around in the United States since the beginning of the 20th century, but the exhaust from internal combustion locomotives has never been felt.
Throughout the 20th century, oil giants controlled American politics and business for almost two terms, and fuel vehicles became the shining protagonist.
Electric cars were almost swept into the scrapheap of history, and were not mentioned again until the oil crisis.
Until a fanatical believer in new energy - Elon Musk appeared.
While studying at the Wharton School of Business, Musk published two papers that hinted at future career paths.
One predicts that solar energy technology will bloom in an all-round way, and the other discusses how to use supercapacitors to store energy. In this paper, he has shown a strong interest in products such as electric vehicles.
Tesla's popularity in the United States has allowed countries around the world to vaguely see a different path.
Gu Yun is representing Tesla during this trip. The cooperation with the government is inherently insufficient, but each has obvious advantages.
One has the world's largest automobile consumer market and the central government, and the other is a technology company with strong ability to attract money.
The two protagonists perfectly bet on the core of this curved competition: technology and policy.
On the one hand, the core battery technology of battery cars has been unable to achieve major breakthroughs, which has led to high battery costs and traditional automobile giants have no motivation to innovate.
On the other hand, without high-pressure government policies, electric vehicles would not be able to enter the public eye at all.
The two forces are exploring alone along their own routes on both sides of the ocean. Neither of them can predict tomorrow.
