Volkswagen Group China and its partners, Shanghai Volkswagen and FAW-Volkswagen, celebrated the delivery of 20 million cars to Chinese customers at the Volkswagen Group Night on April 19.

"This is a unique moment for us. With our passion for engineering we paved the way for our success over 30 years ago, when we were one of the first foreign automotive companies to venture into China," said Jochem Heizmann, member of the board of management of Volkswagen as well as president and CEO of Volkswagen Group China.

Zhang Hailiang, president of Shanghai Volkswagen, and Zhang Pijie, president of FAW-Volkswagen, also attended the celebration at the Group Night in Beijing. "Everything we do is about people - our customers, our employees, and the society," said Heizmann.

"That is why in our new 'ren wei ben' strategy for China, we put our focus on people and aim to become the most people-oriented car manufacturer."

In the first quarter of 2014, the group sold more than 880,000 vehicles, which marked a growth of 14.5 percent compared to the same period last year. By the end of this year, the company expects to deliver more than 3.5 million cars to Chinese customers.

Volkswagen is increasing its production capacity to meet consumers' demands for individual mobility. It is expected that by 2018, the group's annual production capacity in China will reach more than 4 million units.

This year the company plans to extend its new energy vehicle model range by introducing the electric up!, followed by the new e-Golf and in 2015 by the A3 e-tron and the Golf GTE with their innovative Plug-In Hybrid technology. The next step in 2016 will be the localization of its most advanced Plug-In Hybrid models in China.

At the same time, Volkswagen wants to enhance customer service and focus on expanding its dealer network, especially in the third- and fourth-tier cities. This year, the group plans to open more than 350 new dealerships, expanding its retail network to more than 230 cities across the country.

The skills, creative ideas, and commitment of employees are the driving force behind the company. By 2018, Volkswagen, its joint ventures and dealership network will have created more than 600,000 jobs in China.

Of these the group will directly employ more than 100,000 people - almost 20,000 more than today. This year, dealership staff is due to increase by up to 360,000 employees at almost 2,750 dealerships. In four years, the dealership network will have more than 500,000 people serving customers across the country.

Volkswagen Group has also committed to educating future talents of the domestic auto industry. The company has supported research and training at more than 30 Chinese universities and technical schools.

The group made a commitment to use the latest environmental and resource friendly technologies to set the trend for sustainable products and production. With its "Think Blue. Factory" concept, Volkswagen ensures that resources at its factories are efficiently used and eco-friendly recycled.

Volkswagen Group has also got involved in creating future opportunities for China's next generation. In April 2014, the company rolled out a series of child safety awareness programs and road shows to promote children's road safety in 17 cities. In 2013, the group and its joint ventures donated 5,000 child safety seats to families across the country.

zhuanti@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 04/20/2014 page27)