Honda includes a package to buy batteries in China

Honda lifts the curtain on its Sino-Japanese sourcing initiative: the company plans to set up a joint venture in China with Chinese partners Dongfeng and GAC later this month. The goal is to consolidate the purchase of electric vehicle batteries from CATL.

Honda will own 50% of the joint venture, of which Dongfeng and GAC each own 25%, according to an attached statement. The training will be completed by the end of September. The trio agreed to choose Beijing, the capital of China, as the headquarters of the company, which will be called HDG Beijing Trade Service (Chinese title: Zhongrui Beijing Trade Service).  

Honda still maintains the joint venture Dongfeng Honda and GAC Honda with the two Chinese automakers mentioned above. They now get pins separate from CATL. With the new venture, battery supply must now be centralized. And, it may have influenced Honda price Philippines.

At the same time, Honda China is cooperating extensively with the Chinese battery manufacturer. To this end, the two sides recently drafted a memorandum of understanding. Details on quantity and price are not known. Honda simply said it wanted to “establish a long-term and stable battery supply relationship.” There is also cooperation in battery production and recycling at the CATL factory under construction in Yichun, Jiangxi province.

The two companies already know each other well: the first comprehensive battery partnership agreement dates back to mid-2020, when Honda and Chinese battery makers collaborated on battery development, discussed recycling and second lifetime as well as discovered the distribution system. The Japanese automaker also acquired a 1% stake in CATL during this time period.

A secure battery supply is essential for Honda as the Japanese company, along with its Chinese partners, launched an electrification attack in China with the new brand in the fall of 2018. 

As the first representative of the new model line, NS1 of Dongfeng Honda held its launch in China at the end of April 2022. It was followed in June with the launch of GAC’s NP1 market ​​Honda. In principle, Honda plans to launch 10 electric vehicle models on the market by 2027 through a joint venture with GAC and Dongfeng. 

With this in mind, several new factories are now being started up in the country, especially in Guangzhou and Wuhan. According to previous reports, the NP1 and NS1 duo are still based on the HR-V internal combustion engine model. 

Honda itself is also talking about the all-electric vehicle architecture “Architecture F” – not ruling out the possibility that it could be an all-electric development on the platform of the HR-V. Other models announced by Honda in China will then use the architecture “developed specifically for electric vehicles”. N models are not coming to Europe.

Honda itself is also focusing its electrification plans on three all-new electric vehicle platforms. Their first installment is expected to premiere in 2024 at the earliest. A new electric vehicle based on the “big” platform will arrive in North America in 2026. Then a new global platform will be announced in the spring with General Motors – the platform is aimed at low-priced electric vehicles. affordable. The base will be operational in 2027.

Just yesterday, Honda announced that it has also signed a strategic partnership with Japanese retailer Hanwa to provide more stable batteries. The purpose of the agreement is to ensure a stable supply of battery materials in the medium and long term. These include nickel, cobalt and lithium.

As stated, Honda aims to launch 30 electric vehicle models in the global market by 2030 and achieve sales of more than two million electric vehicles per year. From 2040, only battery and fuel cell electric vehicles will be marketed under the Honda brand.