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South-east Asia’s EV opening and the lesson from China
China’s oversaturated EV market is pushing companies abroad, creating an opening South-east Asia cannot afford to miss.
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Renault China chairman and CEO Soh Wei Ming’s ambitious start-up, called BeyonCa, was conceived as a premium EV maker with a technological edge.
PHOTO: HSIANG CHENG TSENG
When Mr Soh Wei Ming left Volkswagen China in 2021 to build what would be China’s first ultra-luxury electric vehicle, it was seen as a bold, even audacious move.
For 25 years, Mr Soh, a Singaporean, had earned a reputation inside China’s auto industry as a fixer. At Daimler-Benz and later Volkswagen Group, where he was on its management board and was also executive vice-president, he was known for shutting down underperforming units and killing off models that did not meet his standards.
