Volkswagen Group’s China unit appointed two veteran managers to run its electric-vehicle joint venture with JAC Motor Co.
Erwin Gabardi was named CEO of the partnership while Jorg Graf will be chief digitization officer, VW China said.
Gabardi was previously general secretary and vice president for corporate strategy at VW China.
In 2015, he was hired by VW Group from consultant McKinsey & Co. to help VW improve auto manufacturing efficiency in Europe and China.
Graf was previously chief information officer and head of organizational development at FAW-VW, VW Group’s joint venture with China FAW Group Corp.
VW’s EV partnership with JAC started construction last month on a new assembly plant in the eastern city of Hefei. The factory, slated to launch output in the second half of 2023, will have capacity to produce up to 350,000 EVs annually after reaching full capacity.
It will become VW’s third plant to build MEB-based EVs in China.
In late 2020, VW’s joint ventures with China FAW Group and SAIC Motor Corp. started building their first MEB-based product, the ID4 crossover for VW brand. Production of a second MEB-based model, the ID6 SUV, will begin later this year.
