Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers BYD, Geely, and SAIC have officially challenged the European Union's import tariffs at the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU). These tariffs, imposed following an anti-subsidy investigation, include 17% for BYD, 18.8% for Geely, and 35.3% for SAIC, in addition to the EU's standard car import duty of 10%.
All three companies filed their complaints just before the deadline, with proceedings at the general court expected to last around 18 months. The China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products has also lodged a complaint, urging negotiations between Beijing and Brussels to avoid tariffs.
The European Commission is preparing its defense and continues technical discussions with Beijing. The challenges may involve disputes over subsidy assessments and the EU's decision to initiate the case independently.
SAIC's significantly higher tariff is particularly contentious, stemming from its lack of cooperation during the investigation. Meanwhile, Tesla, the largest EV exporter from China to the EU, received a lower tariff of 7.8%, raising concerns among Chinese manufacturers about fairness in tariff calculations.