受到国内政策支持，中国的新能源汽车产业正经历快速发展，并不断增强与全球市场的互动。从曾经的汽车外销，到如今的海外建厂，新能源车企探索着新的出海模式，其所面对的合规压力也日益升级。
2024年上半年，中国汽车出口数量继续实现全球领跑，达到279.3万辆。其中，包括插电式混动汽车和纯电动汽车在内的新能源汽车出口量为60.5万辆，占比达21.6 percent。
“整车直接出口之外，中国新能源车的出海模式正变得更加丰富，各类新能源车出海项目迅猛发展。出海的新能源车企面临多维度、复杂多变的挑战，最为重要的包括知识产权保护、反垄断合规、ESG合规。”
- 杨晓莉，天元律师事务所
欧洲、东南亚是中国新能源汽车最重要的市场，其中在比利时、泰国的市场渗透率最高。今年，巴西和以其为代表的拉美市场的重要性也在持续提升。
而在整车直接出口之外，中国新能源车的出海模式正变得更加丰富。天元律师事务所合伙人杨晓莉律师指出，汽车散件出口、海外组装模式正在增加，此外收购海外品牌、建立产业链等实现“本土化”运营的模式也持续见诸报端，各类“新能源车出海项目迅猛发展”。
的确，过去几年中国车企海外建厂，尤其打造新能源车工厂的消息不断牵动着市场神经。和热点销售市场相对应，已落地工厂和建厂计划也聚焦于欧洲、东南亚、拉美三区域。
2024年，已经有比亚迪新能源汽车生产基地落地匈牙利、奇瑞与西班牙埃布罗电动汽车设立当地合资企业、广汽埃安泰国工厂启动生产；此外，哪吒汽车、上汽集团、长城汽车、小鹏汽车等，也公布了在泰国、巴西、墨西哥、欧洲等地建厂的计划。
伴随出海深度加增，关注中国企业全球化的新媒体霞光社就在《2024中国新能源汽车出海十大趋势洞察》中指出，未来新能源汽车出海将呈现“四化”趋势，其中之一便是“合规化”，即“遵守国际市场法规，确保合规经营”。
“迄今，全球194个国家中已有130多个国家通过了数据和个人隐私保护相关法律。绝大多数商业经营活动中都无法绕开数据和个人信息处理活动，汽车行业也不例外。”
- 金杜律师事务所
数据合规成重点关切
汽车作为出行工具，和数据原本不太相关。但伴随智能化、科技感成为许多新能源汽车的重要卖点，汽车开始越来越多收集个人信息，提供个性化的出行及生活服务，新能源车甚至被称为手机之外第二个“超级终端”。
另一方面，数据问题在全球范围内、针对各行各业，都开始成为重点关切，如金杜律师事务所所指出的，“迄今，全球194个国家中已有130多个国家通过了数据和个人隐私保护相关法律。绝大多数商业经营活动中都无法绕开数据和个人信息处理活动，汽车行业也不例外”。
天元的杨晓莉律师认为，EV企业实际上在数据合规与隐私保护领域面临着更严格的要求。她解释道：“车辆数据涉及用户隐私、驾驶习惯及车辆安全等敏感信息，企业应在数据采集、存储、处理及传输的每一个环节，严格遵循国内外相关法律法规及行业标准，保障数据的安全性、隐私性及完整性。”此外，企业还需“严格遵守相关国家和地区的跨境数据流动规定”。
不久前，金杜律师事务所和吉利数科合作撰写了一系列新能源车出海现状文章，其中《中国新能源汽车出海数据合规风险与应对》一篇专门关注了相关问题。文章中，金杜将汽车企业的数据义务分为了三类。
一类是“个人信息保护的一般性义务”，例如根据国际主流个人信息保护思路，收集个人信息需要个人授权、采取充分的安全措施、遵循最小必要和目的限制原则、向个人信息主体提供行使法定权利的途径等。
第二类则比较特殊，是“车内个人信息回传的特殊性义务”。这和新能源车的防疲劳、AI语音助手等智慧功能相关，往往需要收集面部特征、追踪眼球、收集声纹和对话，“从中国出口的车辆，如果其车机平台或智能座舱的服务器部署于中国境内，则需考虑车内个人信息的回传问题，遵守当地的数据跨境传输法律要求”，金杜提醒道。
第三类则是自动驾驶功能可能涉及的测绘、国家安全等约束。以美国为例，今年初拜登总统签发《关于防止受关注国家获取美国人大量敏感个人数据和美国政府相关数据的行政命令》，认定美国人敏感个人数据包括特定种类的个人识别符、地理位置数据和相关传感器数据、生物识别数据、个人财务数据等，“只能在美国当地存储并不得传输至中国”。
对此，下一步“数据本地化”可能将成为越来越多中国车企的选择。8月底，小鹏汽车告诉彭博社，其在考察欧洲建厂的过程中也“计划在欧洲建立一个大型数据中心”。
此外，比亚迪在去年已宣布在全球多地设立“比亚迪海外云服务数据中心”的计划，“负责处理和分析用户数据，并专注于为比亚迪的自动驾驶技术提供强大的计算能力”。
其他关注焦点
数据之外，出海的新能源车企还面临其他多维度、复杂多变的挑战，杨晓莉律师指出最为重要的包括知识产权保护、反垄断合规、ESG合规。
“知识产权是EV企业在国际化征途中的关键挑战之一。”杨律师坦言，“为了在国际舞台上稳固创新成果与商业利益，EV企业亟需深化知识产权意识，积极融入国际知识产权框架,预先筹划，利用PCT等国际专利申请机制构建坚实的海外专利防线，并提前排查潜在风险，通过交叉许可、参与专利池等多种合作模式稳固权利基础。”
此外，“EV企业自身商业秘密的保护以及避免侵犯合作方的商业秘密，也是避免国际诉讼的重要课题”。
而在新能源车企拓展海外并购、合资等交易活动时，“反垄断合规成为至关重要的一环”。杨律师指出，就此，律师能够协助企业准备详尽的申报材料，全程配合反垄断监管机构的审查流程，保障交易顺畅推进。此外，EV企业还应注意构建完善的反垄断合规体系。
与此同时，伴随ESG日益成为企业的常规关切，新能源车企能否在环境保护、社会责任及公司治理方面达到国际认可的标准与实践，也成为其树立良好品牌形象、促进自身可持续发展的关键。杨律师指出，ESG涵盖面很广，既包括遵守国内外环境保护法律法规、确保生产运营绿色合规、重视环保并选用绿色供应商，也包括确保员工工作环境、合理待遇、健康安全的责任，此外还涉及维护消费者权益，并建立透明、高效的公司治理结构。
金杜律师事务所则在上述系列文章的《中国新能源汽车在跨境监管下的风险与应对》篇中指出，对新能源车企来说，尤其一些与欧美市场相关的“泛ESG”类问题特别值得注意。
一类问题和强迫劳动相关，例如欧盟的《欧盟市场禁止强迫劳动产品条例》、美国的《维吾尔族强迫劳动预防法》，都重点关注产品及其供应链是否涉及某些高度敏感地区，一旦被调查涉及，全部产品都要撤出相应市场。
另一类问题关乎原材料来源，例如欧盟的《冲突矿产条例》，使得企业对供应链中的“冲突矿产”合规问题的尽职调查成为强制性要求。所谓“冲突矿产”，是指涉及矿区环境生态污染、童工保护、劳工人权问题、地区暴力武装冲突甚至恐怖主义等多重因素的矿产，其目前涉及的锡、钨等4种金属广泛用于汽车制造等行业，一旦涉及，也可能被要求退出相应市场。
此外，不同细分市场针对新能源汽车也发布有特殊的监管要求，企业需保持注意，例如泰国对电动汽车有安全认证监管、韩国对海外汽车有有害物质和可回收利用率监管等。
强化合规及服务能力
金杜指出，实际上，汽车产业的供应链一直以复杂著称，加之部分车企拥有海量车型，对多层级供应链的合规管理确是难点。对此，金杜给出了几点建议。
首先是要有针对性地面对欧美一系列对汽车及其供应链的监管要求，全面审查自身供应链是否存在相应合规风险，并建立完善供应链合规管理体系。
其次是对最终用户或最终用途进行审慎评估，尤其现在国际制裁形式复杂，如果将新能源车出口到俄罗斯等市场，要避免触碰欧美管制红线，防止产品出口欧美受到影响。
第三是积极利用数字系统，建立与国际接轨的合规管理体系。“企业可以考虑以数字化溯源平台的形式进行项目落地，面向全链实时采集数据，自动进行上下游数据勾稽校验，快速生成不可篡改的产品证据链，在确保可信度与质量的同时，还可压缩成本。”金杜说。
借助天元团队对比亚迪、北汽新能源等多家企业的服务经验，杨晓莉律师指出，中国新能源车企面对的海外合规压力升级，也对提供服务的律师提出了更高要求，“不仅要有传统法律服务领域的专业知识，还要有对新兴行业趋势、国际市场规则以及跨文化交流的深刻理解”。
“律师要具备创新思维和前瞻性思考，能够预见洞悉EV行业的最新风向标与潜在法律风险，为客户提供前瞻性的法律建议，这就要求我们有持续学习的态度，并及时跟踪行业动态和法律法规的最新变化。”
此外，“海外市场意味着与不同文化背景的商业伙伴打交道，要求律师需具备良好的跨文化沟通能力，能够理解并尊重不同文化的商业习惯和法律观念，促进双方的有效沟通和合作，同时具备高超的谈判技巧，能够在复杂的商业环境中为客户争取最有利的条件”，杨律师说。
Charged Compliance
Supported by domestic policies, China's electric vehicle (EV) industry is rapidly expanding and strengthening its interaction with global markets. Once focused on exporting cars, Chinese EV companies are now exploring new avenues by establishing factories overseas. With this shift, the compliance pressures they face are also intensifying.
In the first half of 2024, China's automobile exports continued to lead globally, reaching 2.793 million units. Of these, new energy vehicles (NEVs), including plug-in hybrids and fully electric vehicles, accounted for 605,000 units, representing 21.6 percent of the total.
“Beyond direct vehicle exports, Chinese EV companies are diversifying their overseas strategies, the expansion of NEV projects overseas has been rapid. Chinese EV companies going global face numerous complex and multifaceted challenges. Some of the most important concerns include intellectual property protection, antitrust compliance, and environmental, social, and governance compliance.”
- Yang Xiaoli, Tian Yuan Law Firm
Europe and Southeast Asia remain the most important markets for Chinese NEVs, with Belgium and Thailand boasting the highest market penetration. Meanwhile, the significance of Latin America, particularly Brazil, is also on the rise.
Beyond direct vehicle exports, Chinese EV companies are diversifying their overseas strategies. Yang Xiaoli, a partner at Tian Yuan Law Firm, notes an increase in the export of vehicle parts for overseas assembly, as well as acquisitions of foreign brands and efforts to localize operations by establishing supply chains abroad. "The expansion of NEV projects overseas has been rapid," she adds.
Indeed, Chinese automakers’ moves to build factories abroad, especially for NEVs, have drawn significant attention in recent years. These factory projects and plans are primarily focused on Europe, Southeast Asia, and Latin America—regions that align with key sales markets.
In 2024 alone, several notable developments have occurred: BYD has established an NEV production base in Hungary; Chery has partnered with Spain's Ebro Electric Vehicles to set up a local joint venture; and GAC Aion’s factory in Thailand has commenced production. Additionally, brands such as Neta Auto, SAIC Motor, Great Wall Motors, and XPeng have announced plans to build factories in Thailand, Brazil, Mexico, and Europe.
As Chinese companies deepen their global presence, media outlet Xiaguang Society, which focuses on China’s global expansion, highlighted in its "2024 Insights on the Top 10 Trends in Chinese NEV Exports" that one of the key trends is "compliance"—the need to adhere to international regulations and ensure lawful operations in global markets.
"To date, over 130 of the world's 194 countries have passed laws on data and personal privacy protection. In most business activities, data processing and personal information collection are unavoidable, and the automotive industry is no exception."=
- King & Wood Mallesons
DATA BECOMES KEY FOCUS
Traditionally, automobiles were not closely linked with data. However, as smart technology and innovation have become major selling points for many NEVs, cars are increasingly collecting personal information to offer personalized travel and lifestyle services. Some now refer to NEVs as the "second super-terminal" after smartphones.
Globally, data issues are becoming a top concern across industries. As noted by King & Wood Mallesons, "To date, over 130 of the world's 194 countries have passed laws on data and personal privacy protection. In most business activities, data processing and personal information collection are unavoidable, and the automotive industry is no exception."
According to Yang, EV companies face even stricter requirements in the areas of data compliance and privacy protection. "Vehicle data involves sensitive information such as user privacy, driving habits, and vehicle safety. Companies must ensure that every stage of data collection, storage, processing, and transmission complies with domestic and international laws and industry standards to protect the security, privacy, and integrity of the data," she explains. Moreover, companies must "strictly adhere to cross-border data transfer regulations in relevant countries and regions."
In a recent article co-authored by KWM and carmaker Geely’s Digital Technology subsidiary, KWM classifies the data obligations of EV companies into three categories.
The first category is "general obligations for personal information protection," which follows international norms such as obtaining personal consent for data collection, implementing sufficient security measures, adhering to principles of minimal necessity and purpose limitation, and providing avenues for data subjects to exercise their legal rights.
The second category is the "specific obligations for in-car personal data transmission." This pertains to intelligent features such as fatigue prevention and AI voice assistants, which often require collecting facial features, eye-tracking data, voiceprints, and conversations. "For vehicles exported from China, if their in-car platforms or smart cockpit servers are based in China, companies must address the issue of transmitting in-car personal data across borders and comply with local data transfer laws," KWM notes.
The third category involves constraints related to mapping and national security, which are critical to autonomous driving features. In the U.S., for example, President Biden issued an executive order earlier this year aimed at preventing sensitive personal data and government-related data from falling into the hands of "countries of concern." This includes certain types of personal identifiers, geolocation data, sensor data, biometric information, and financial data, which "must be stored locally and cannot be transferred to China."
As a result, "data localization" may become an increasingly common strategy for Chinese automakers. In late August, XPeng told Bloomberg that, as part of its plans to build a factory in Europe, it is also "planning to establish a large data centre in Europe."
Similarly, BYD announced last year that it would establish "BYD Overseas Cloud Service Data Centres" in multiple locations worldwide to "process and analyze user data and focus on providing powerful computing capabilities for BYD's autonomous driving technologies."
OTHER COMPLIANCE PAIN POINTS
Beyond data, Chinese EV companies going global face numerous complex and multifaceted challenges. According to Yang, some of the most important concerns include intellectual property (IP) protection, antitrust compliance, and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) compliance.
"IP is one of the key challenges for EV companies in their international ventures," Yang notes. "To safeguard their innovations and commercial interests on the global stage, EV companies must strengthen their IP awareness and integrate into international IP frameworks. This includes using mechanisms like the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) to build a robust overseas patent portfolio and preemptively identifying risks through cross-licensing, patent pools, and other cooperative models."
Additionally, Yang stresses the importance of protecting a company's trade secrets and avoiding infringement on those of its partners, which is crucial in preventing international litigation.
As EV companies engage in overseas mergers, acquisitions, and joint ventures, "antitrust compliance becomes a critical factor," Yang says. Lawyers can assist in preparing detailed filings and navigating the review process with antitrust regulators, ensuring smooth transactions. Furthermore, EV companies should develop a comprehensive antitrust compliance system.
Meanwhile, with ESG considerations becoming a routine concern for companies, meeting internationally recognized standards for environmental protection, social responsibility, and corporate governance is key to establishing a strong brand image and fostering sustainable development. Yang highlights that ESG is broad in scope, covering areas such as compliance with domestic and international environmental laws, ensuring green and sustainable production, choosing eco-friendly suppliers, ensuring employee welfare, fair compensation, health and safety, protecting consumer rights, and maintaining a transparent and efficient corporate governance structure.
KWM points out in its article titled “Risks and Responses for Chinese EVs Under Cross-Border Regulation” that "pan-ESG" issues, particularly those related to the European and U.S. markets, warrant special attention.
One area of concern is forced labor. Regulations such as the European Union's Regulation on Prohibiting Products Made with Forced Labor and the U.S. Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act focus on whether products or their supply chains involve sensitive regions. If investigated and implicated, all products could be removed from the relevant market.
Another issue relates to the sourcing of raw materials. The EU’s Conflict Minerals Regulation mandates due diligence on the compliance of supply chains with respect to “conflict minerals,” which include tin, tungsten, and other metals widely used in automotive manufacturing. These minerals are linked to environmental degradation, child labor, workers' rights violations, and violent conflict in certain regions. If found to be involved, products may also be banned from the market.
Additionally, different sub-markets have introduced unique regulatory requirements for EVs, such as Thailand's safety certification regulations and South Korea's regulations on hazardous materials and recycling rates for imported vehicles.
ENHANCING COMPLIANCE CAPABILITIES
KWM points out that the automotive industry’s supply chain has always been known for its complexity. This, combined with the vast range of models some automakers produce, makes compliance management across multilayered supply chains a challenging task. The firm offers several recommendations to address these challenges.
First, companies must proactively address the various regulatory requirements from the U.S. and Europe concerning automobiles and their supply chains. This involves conducting a thorough review of their own supply chains to identify potential risks and establishing a comprehensive compliance management system.
Second, careful evaluation of the end user or final use of the product is essential, especially given the complexity of international sanctions. For instance, exporting EVs to markets like Russia may risk violating U.S. and European sanctions, which could impact the export of products to these regions.
Third, companies should leverage digital systems to build compliance frameworks. "Businesses could consider implementing a digital traceability platform that collects real-time data across the entire supply chain. This system would automatically validate data between upstream and downstream suppliers, quickly generating an immutable chain of product evidence. Not only does this ensure credibility and quality, but it also helps reduce costs," KWM advises.
Drawing from Tian Yuan's experience with clients like BYD and BAIC New Energy, Yang notes that the increasing compliance pressures facing Chinese EV companies abroad are also raising the bar for the lawyers who serve them. "Lawyers must possess not only legal expertise but also a deep understanding of emerging industry trends, international market rules, and cross-cultural communication."
"Lawyers need to have innovative thinking and forward-looking insights, be able to foresee the latest trends and potential legal risks in the EV industry, and offer proactive legal advice to clients. This requires us to maintain a continuous learning mindset and stay updated on industry trends and legal developments," she adds.
Furthermore, "Entering overseas markets means working with business partners from different cultural backgrounds. Lawyers must have strong cross-cultural communication skills to facilitate effective collaboration, while negotiation skills are also crucial in helping clients secure favorable terms in complex business environments," Yang explains.
