STOCKHOLM — Volvo Cars has signed a memorandum of understanding with its Chinese sister company Geely Auto to become the exclusive importer and distributor of Lynk & Co electric vehicles (EVs) in Europe, the company said on Monday.
After Volvo Cars last year brought back CEO Hakan Samuelsson — a trusted confidant of Geely-owner Li Shufu, who ran Volvo Cars for over a decade — the company has strengthened its collaboration with brands, suppliers and technology that are ultimately controlled by privately held Geely Holding.
Among them, Lynk & Co, founded in 2016 in Sweden, is a premium brand that sells and rents vehicles in several European markets and has expanded beyond its original 01 plug-in hybrid SUV.
“Volvo Cars intends to use Volvo Cars retailers for the sale of Lynk & Co cars, and use its sales and servicing system in relevant markets,” Volvo Cars said.
The new partnership will allow both brands to reach a wider audience, as they target different customers and segments without additional product investments, it said further.
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“By leveraging Volvo Cars’ central commercial operations and mature dealer network, Lynk & Co Europe will achieve faster scalability capable of supporting higher volumes,” Lynk & Co said in a separate statement.
Aims to rank among the five biggest
Geely Holding in January said it aimed to rank among the world’s five leading automakers with global sales of over 6.5 million vehicles by 2030 and last week it announced plans to double by next year the number of vehicle projects it manages at its European technology hub.
Until 2024, Volvo Cars planned to go all-electric by the end of the decade, but it has continued to introduce hybrids as demand for fully electric vehicles has slowed.
Geely Holding has a large portfolio of automotive brands that also includes Zeekr, Lotus and Polestar. Over the last two years, it has shifted its focus from acquisitions to cost-cutting and tighter integration, consolidating brands such as Lynk & Co and Zeekr under Geely Auto.
