Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Group (安徽江淮汽车集团股份有限公司)

Anhui’s share of sales from low-carbon vehicles has grown steadily from 0 percent in 2015 to 25 percent in 2019. This resulted in a decrease of vehicle in-use emissions that is almost aligned with the company’s well below 2-degree decarbonisation pathway. A decreasing share of sale from SUVs also contributed to the company’s strong performance in this module.

The company has not set any emissions reduction targets for either its manufacturing emissions or its more significant vehicle in-use emissions. The company’s executives should set science-based targets in the medium and long term to hold the company accountable to meet the emissions reductions required under a well below 2-degree scenario.

No evidence was found regarding Anhui’s proactive management engagement on climate change issues, which is necessary to strategically steer the company towards a low-carbon future. Anhui should appoint executives with climate expertise, formalise a low-carbon transition plan using climate scenario analysis, set emissions reduction targets and stress test its business on emissions-related issues, for example by using an internal carbon price to inform investment decisions, in order to drive the company’s low-carbon transition progress. While Anhui is currently performing well on sold product performance, this appears to be driven more by policies set by the Chinese government rather than low-carbon commitments made by company executives.

Visible financial commitments to develop the breakthrough technologies required to bring low-carbon vehicles to market at scale is a strong indicator of a company’s overall commitment to a low-carbon economy. However, no data was found regarding Anhui’s research and development spending on climate change mitigation technologies. The company should improve transparency concerning its climate change mitigation technology spending – especially on non-mature technologies – to indicate a commitment to the low-carbon transition.

Anhui has not made any public commitments to align with the low-carbon transition. Neither was evidence found regarding specific emissions reduction targets set by the company. Furthermore, it is not clear from the information available whether the company’s rapid increase in its share of sales from low-carbon vehicles is driven solely by external factors. Anhui can demonstrate its commitment to a low-carbon future by publishing a low-carbon transition plan that outlines specific actions and targets.

Anhui has not published details of how it plans to transition its light duty passenger vehicles business activities to align with the low-carbon economy. Currently, it appears that the company’s growth of low-carbon vehicle sales primarily comes from the Chinese government’s subsidies rather than the company’s own low-carbon planning. Moreover, there was no evidence of business activities outside the direct manufacture and sale of vehicles to advance the low-carbon transition.

The vast majority of Anhui’s sales are in the China sales region. In 2018 and 2019, 25 percent of the company’s light duty passenger vehicle sales came from low-carbon vehicles. However, no evidence was found to indicate the company engaged with its suppliers or customers to promote low-carbon technologies or encouraged preference for low-carbon vehicles rather than conventional internal combustion engine vehicles.

Anhui’s share of sales from low-carbon vehicles has increased from 0 percent in 2014 and 2015 to 25 percent in 2018 and 2019, driving reductions in its vehicle in-use emissions. However, no information was found concerning the company’s manufacturing emissions. Neither has the company openly supported nor opposed positive climate policies directly or indirectly. Anhui’s legacy shows reaction to the Chinese government’s initiatives and targets rather than proactive market change.

Anhui has not made a strong commitment to promote low-carbon products or support the development of the required infrastructure to facilitate large-scale transition away from conventional fossil fuel engines. Furthermore, the company’s planning and actions are not very consistent with the low-carbon transition. If the Chinese government’s priorities were to move away from promoting low-carbon – or ‘new energy’ – vehicles, then it is probable that the company’s sold product performance would quickly deteriorate.