Zhejiang Geely Holding Group and Mercedes-Benz formed a German subsidiary under their China-based joint venture that will produce and market electric vehicles for the Smart brand.
The subsidiary, in Leinfelden-Echterdingen, a Stuttgart suburb, will manage sales, marketing and aftersales service of the next generation of Smart vehicles, Geely said this week.
Mercedes-Benz manager Dirk Adelmann was named CEO of the subsidiary, Smart Europe, and Martin Gunther, another Mercedes manager, was named CFO.
The appointments were made by Xiangbei Tong, a Geely executive who in January became CEO of Geely Smart Automobile Co., the joint venture Geely and Mercedes-Benz established in the east China city of Ningbo in late 2019.
Geely Smart, a 5.4 billion yuan ($771.4 million) partnership equally owned by Geely and Mercedes-Benz, is developing a new architecture for Smart-brand EVs designed by Mercedes-Benz.
The joint venture tentatively plans to launch sales in 2022, with vehicles produced in China and distributed globally.
Geely, which purchased a 9.7 percent stake in Mercedes parent Daimler in 2018, operates a separate partnership with Mercedes-Benz in China using the Germany luxury brand’s vehicles to provide ride-hailing services.
