ABB has record-high sales in China, bullish on electric car future

Swiss power and automation group ABB said it posted record-high sales in China despite many uncertainties in the economy, and expects electric cars to become a key future market for its products.

Sales in China rose to US$5.6 billion in 2013, from just over US$5.2 billion in 2012, the company announced in Beijing today. New orders — not yet classified as completed sales — also rose to a record high of US$5.6 billion in China last year.

Chunyuan Gu, ABB's China chairman and president, attributed the results to Chinese government policies, which push for energy savings, pollution control and industrial technology upgrades, although there were many uncertainties in the overall situation.

ABB, which competes with Germany's Siemens and France's Schneider Electric, makes products ranging from grids to transformers and robots.

It is also developing wall-mounted electric-car chargers with Shenzhen-based BYD Daimler New Technology Co in an effort to address a lack of charging infrastructure in the country. BYD Daimler is a joint venture between Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD and premier carmaker Daimler AG that is dedicated to new energy vehicle development.

Gu said the electric car market is set to boom eventually in the country despite a slow start. "Although I can't predict the exact time, once on track, the electric car market in China is going to be huge," he said.

A government plan has said China aims to have 500,000 new energy cars, including hybrid and electric vehicles, on its roads by next year, and 5 million by 2020.

But the 2015 target looks unrealistic now after the electric car sector got off to a slow start in the country, analysts said. Only about 17,600 such vehicles were sold in China last year, a fraction of the country's total vehicle sales volume of more than 20 million.

Meanwhile, ABB said it invested another US$136 million in China last year, bringing the total to US$1.8 billion in the country.