March Deliveries of Geely-Backed EV Firm Zeekr Slump to 1,795 Units

Zeekr, an all-electric vehicle brand operated by Chinese automaker Geely, announced on Friday that due to the pandemic and an ongoing shortage of computer chips, just 1,795 Zeekr 001 models were sold in March this year, with a cumulative sales volume of 14,248 vehicles. The company said that it expected production and delivery to significantly improve in April with the arrival of a new batch of core components at the end of March.

In February, 2,916 units of the Zeekr 001 were delivered, following 3,530 in January and 3,796 in December.

Founded at the end of March last year, Zeekr is a high-end new energy vehicle brand under Geely, a major Chinese automobile company. At present, there is only the Zeekr 001 model within this new brand. Zeekr receives joint investment from Geely Auto and Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, of which Geely Auto holds a 51% stake and Geely Holding Group holds 49% stake.

Zeekr revealed that many of its suppliers in China and abroad have been impacted to varying degrees following a spurt of domestic COVID-19 transmissions, causing high uncertainty in supply chains. After many rounds of negotiation with its supplier Vibracoustic, the company’s exclusive production line of Zeekr 001 aerial suspension parts had been put into production while its overall production and delivery will continue to improve.

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Chinese media outlet Jiemian News reported that the Zeekr 001 has been facing great delivery pressure since its launch. As a highly customized model, it is equipped with more than 2,000 kinds of computer chips. In addition, the model’s many components, such as air springs, come from different suppliers around the world. However, some of its delivery orders have been delayed due to the pandemic and lack of computer chips.

It is reported that in the next three years, Zeekr will launch six new models in succession. The annual sales target of the company will reach 650,000 vehicles in 2025, which can earn it a substantial share of the high-end electric vehicle market.