Contract manufacturing: Magna starts assembling Xpeng G6 and G9 crossovers in Austria
Chinese brand Xpeng has launched the assembly of its electric cars in Europe to circumvent additional duties of the European Union. The first copies of the G6 and G9 models have rolled off the assembly line at the Magna Steyr plant in Graz, Austria.
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The contract production is organised according to the SKD (semi-knocked down) scheme - the cars are first assembled in China, partially disassembled and in this form sent to Austria, where they undergo final assembly.
Xpeng is currently subject to EU duties on fully assembled Chinese electric cars: in addition to the existing 10 per cent import duty, an additional surcharge of 21.3 per cent is levied. With the start of large-unit assembly in Austria, these additional duties are no longer applicable.
For Magna, the contract with Xpeng was a good support: production in Graz is declining, with only 71.9 thousand cars assembled there in 2024 against more than 105 thousand a year earlier. In recent years, the company has lost orders from Jaguar, BMW, Toyota, Fisker and Ineos.
Magna Complete Vehicles president Roland Prettner called the agreement with Xpeng an important milestone and the first partnership with a Chinese manufacturer in Europe. Xpeng vice-president Brian Gu emphasised that the cooperation with Magna will form the basis for the brand's long-term presence in the European market.
Xpeng entered the European market in 2021, starting with Norway. In the first half of 2025, the company sold just over 8,000 cars on the continent, but expects to grow: the G6 and G9 will soon be joined by the updated sedan P7+, presented at the IAA Mobility 2025 exhibition, as well as new models. Additionally, Xpeng is opening an RD centre in Munich to adapt the cars to local markets.