How a Chinese e-truck company wants to shake up the global market

The Chinese startup Windrose wants to focus its activities on the U.S. and Europe. The increasing tensions between China and the West do not seem to concern the company’s founder.

Companies in the U.S. have already ordered 5,000 trucks from the Chinese startup Windrose.

Han Wen is pretty confident in his business. «The U.S. is always picking on other countries,» says the founder and CEO of the startup Windrose. The same happened when Japan and South Korea started supplying their cars to the U.S., says Han, «but at the end of the day, the Americans are an open-minded people.»

When asked about the bestselling pickup truck in the U.S., the Chinese entrepreneur laughs and says: «Made by Toyota.» Although Chinese-American relations are currently going through a difficult phase, he is sure that things will get back on track.

Han remains optimistic about his U.S. business despite the increasing confrontation between Washington and Beijing. The 34-year-old wants to start delivering the first electric trucks from his company Windrose at the beginning of next year.

Close to 5,000 preorders from the U.S.

Around 5,000 of the 6,000 preorders that Windrose has on its books come from the U.S. These orders are not binding. However, every company that placed an order with Windrose had to pay a deposit, which will not be refunded if the order is canceled. Han therefore believes that he will be able to sell the vehicles.

In terms of technology, the startup from China can easily compete with established providers such as Daimler Trucks. The Chinese truck’s battery has a capacity of 729 kilowatt- hours. Fully loaded, the truck thus has a range of 670 kilometers. The tractor unit weighs 10.2 tons, and the vehicle allows for a maximum freight of 30 tons.

For comparison: the battery of the latest Daimler model, the eActros 600, has a capacity of 600 kWh. This gives the truck a range of just 500 kilometers before it needs to be recharged.

Han Wen and his company benefit from China’s technological lead in batteries. Windrose buys its battery cells from the Chinese supplier CALB, one of the country’s leading manufacturers. In collaboration with a partner, Han’s startup then designs the batteries and has them produced by a third-party company.

Outsourcing to contract manufacturers

The Chinese company has also outsourced the production of its trucks to contract manufacturers in the eastern Chinese cities of Suzhou and Hefei. It is therefore pursuing a completely different strategy to its competitor Daimler, which manufactures most of its e-trucks itself because the company also sees itself as a premium supplier in truck construction.

«Our investments pay off after selling 10,000 trucks,» says Han, adding that Daimler is already aiming for this with just 500 trucks sold. Windrose, which only has one model on offer, wants to become a low-cost mass supplier, something like the McDonald’s of the e-truck industry.

«We only have one product for the whole world and source as much as possible from China,» says the founder, outlining his low-cost strategy. This way, his company helps trucking companies to save money, he argues.

The Chinese truck is said to cost $250,000 in the U.S., while Daimler sells its trucks for twice that amount, Han claims. The German company, which has 10 battery-powered truck models in its range and says it has sold 3,443 vehicles to date, declined to comment on their sales prices when asked.

IPO in New York

At just 34 years old, Han can already look back on a stellar career. The Windrose founder attended high school in the U.S. and went on to complete a business degree at Stanford University. After a stint at the tech company Plus, a developer of solutions for autonomous driving for trucks, he moved to the hedge fund Bridgewater. In 2022, Han founded Windrose.

For his meeting with the NZZ, Han briefly interrupted his negotiations with Morgan Stanley in Beijing. The Chinese company is currently negotiating its planned IPO with them. Windrose plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange at the end of the year, with a secondary listing in Europe at a later date.

Han brushes aside concerns that Chinese or American authorities could thwart his stock market plans. «We don’t have access to any sensitive data,» says the entrepreneur, «so it should work out.»

To date, Chinese and international funds have invested $150 million in Windrose. Han wants to raise another $100 million before the planned IPO. Windrose is currently in negotiations with two Belgian funds. The IPO is expected to raise a further $200 million.

Hub in Antwerp

Following its successful IPO, Windrose intends to strengthen its presence in Europe and the U.S., partly in an effort to allay political concerns. Parts of the final assembly are to be relocated to the American state of Georgia and to Belgium. «However, the supply chain will remain in China for cost reasons,» Han says.

The Chinese company plans to relocate its headquarters to Antwerp in the near future, a «European logistics hub,» as Han puts it. According to him, Belgium is also a suitable location for the company’s headquarters because the country is considered to be politically neutral. «The Belgians are very open-minded,» he says. Windrose plans to invest a total of $300 million in Europe, primarily in research and development and the final assembly of the trucks.

Windrose is not guaranteed to succeed

Despite its favorable cost structure, technological edge and planned partial localization in Europe and the U.S., Han’s business is not guaranteed to succeed. Reservations in the U.S. and Europe toward companies from China are likely to increase, particularly in the vehicle manufacturing sector, especially if Donald Trump is reelected as president.

The EU has just announced special tariffs on electric cars from China. It is quite possible that Han is wrong in his optimistic assessment of the political situation.

The poorly developed charging infrastructure for battery-powered trucks presents a further obstacle for the rapid spread of e-trucks. Windrose’s trucks also still need to be approved in the U.S. However, Han is convinced that will happen by the end of the year.

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