Geely harbors gigantic plans

Li Shufu, chairman of Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, is on a roll: In addition to his own car brand, which still has modest but steadily increasing sales figures in China, he has acquired Volvo and London Taxi, strengthening both brands. A similar approach is planned for Lotus, where he acquired a 51% stake. This also gives Geely access to Lotus' parent company Proton and the Malaysian market. Furthermore, Li Shufu has also invested in Volvo Trucks and Daimler and aims to establish another joint venture with the Stuttgarters. But all these successes seem like "peanuts" compared to his latest participations and plans: According to Automotive News China, Li's new "mission" is to expand the portfolio beyond the automotive industry to offer mobility services in other areas. The company also acquired the flying car developer Terrafugia in 2017 and plans to deliver its first product, a two-seat car-airplane, to the US from 2019 onward.

In early November 2018, Geely signed a partnership agreement with China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp. at the biennial international airshow in the southern Chinese city of Zhuhai, a state-owned developer of spacecraft, satellites, and rockets. Together, they are now set to develop high-speed maglev trains that can travel at around 1000 km/h in a (near) vacuum tube – a similar concept to Elon Musk's "Tube" project. Additionally, the cooperation plans to launch satellites into space to help establish a "three-dimensional digital transportation network for sea, land, and air traffic."

But Geely is also making good progress in its day-to-day business: Although it only began producing cars in 1997, Geely is now the third-largest passenger car manufacturer in China, behind the Volkswagen Group and General Motors. The company's net profit in the first half of the year increased by 54 percent to 6.7 billion yuan (967 million euros).

What does this mean?

Li Shufu is definitely a "mastermind" of the industry and is now planning significantly larger and more far-reaching steps after steadily building up his brand, aiming to become a comprehensive system provider. An exciting, albeit somewhat risky and highly complex endeavor, which could work due to the sheer size of China—as long as the Chinese state remains supportive with financial aids and boosts behind Li.