Tesla presses EU for lower tariff on EVs shipped in from China

Tesla Inc. has asked the European Union to subject its electric vehicles to a lower tariff rate than other manufacturers shipping cars into the bloc from China, arguing that it’s benefitted from less substantial state support.

The automaker requested an individual examination that could lead to a duty level commensurate with the subsidies it has received, according to Olof Gill, a European Commission spokesman. Other companies producing in China can ask for such an investigation late this year to avoid a 21% levy on top of an existing 10% tariff.

Tesla has a lot at stake in seeking a lower tariff rate. Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk has led the charge in shipping EVs into the EU from China, utilizing a factory in Shanghai as the company’s primary hub for vehicle exports. While the automaker assembles Model Y sport utility vehicles in Germany, it imports Model 3 sedans into the bloc from the China plant.

The Commission announced Wednesday that state-owned manufacturer SAIC Motor Corp., the owner of British brand MG, will be subject to a 38.1% additional tariff. The EU will apply a 20% duty on cars from China’s Geely Holding Group, the maker of Volvo and Polestar, and 17.4% levy on BYD Co. vehicles.

EV producers in China that cooperated with the Commission’s investigation but weren’t part of that three-company sample will be subject to a 21% weighted average duty, while those that didn’t cooperate face the 38.1% rate.