Recently, Foton Motor officially released its “World-Class Leap Strategy” in Jingdezhen, the millennium porcelain capital, clarifying its core paths of “full internationalization, full electrification, and full intelligence” to accelerate its march toward becoming a world-class commercial vehicle enterprise. At the same time, Foton Motor continued to show a strong growth momentum in May, selling 49,604 vehicles in a single month. Among them, new energy vehicles increased by 124% year-on-year, heavy trucks increased by 73% year-on-year, highlighting strategic achievements.
Full Electrification: Technology Leadership and Ecological Empowerment, Unstoppable Explosive Growth
In May, Foton Motor’s new energy sector was fully operational, with sales reaching 8,097 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 124%, and has maintained a rapid growth momentum for five consecutive months. Specifically, each segment has achieved remarkable results: Auman New Energy increased by 498% year-on-year, Eurostar New Energy increased by 110% year-on-year, Aoling New Energy increased by 260% year-on-year, and Shidai New Energy increased by 218% year-on-year. The collective leap of all categories of new energy trucks is strongly driving Foton Motor toward the goal of high-quality transformation and development. Behind this is Foton Motor’s unswerving implementation of the ESG strategy, taking the new energy strategy as its primary strategy, and making unremitting efforts in independent research and development of new energy core technologies and innovation of industrial ecological models.
In the wave of the global commercial vehicle industry accelerating its transformation to electrification, Foton Motor has always promoted the electrification process with a forward-looking strategic layout. Aiming at the complex scenario needs of commercial vehicles, it has formulated a development approach covering full technical routes of electric, hybrid, and hydrogen, truly achieving “electrification where suitable, hybridization where suitable, and hydrogenation where suitable.” Under each technical route, by mastering the independent technologies of core modules, the platform is continuously evolved, and the product matrix is comprehensively extended, with a full layout of four major new energy exclusive vehicle product platforms: heavy-duty, light-duty, micro, and VAN. In the pure electric field, it has achieved independent control of core module technologies such as electronic control, electric drive, and batteries, with extensive power coverage capabilities to meet the full-scenario needs from urban distribution to trunk logistics; in the hybrid field, Foton Motor took the lead in releasing the FHS hybrid technology brand in 2023, fully achieving independent control of key module technologies from hybrid-dedicated engines and gearboxes for different models to dedicated batteries and controllers, as well as software development and technical calibration; in the hydrogen energy field, the vehicle product layout is rich and diverse, covering liquid hydrogen and gaseous hydrogen heavy truck tractors, gaseous hydrogen light trucks, gaseous hydrogen buses, and other models to meet different transportation scenario needs. At the same time, it actively builds a liquid hydrogen industry chain of production-storage-refueling-application to provide strong support for the application of long-range liquid hydrogen heavy trucks.
On the basis of achieving independent control of new energy core technologies, Foton Motor has also actively explored innovations in industrial ecological models. The global smart ecological brand AYK has created full-life cycle integrated solutions around five ecological businesses: “energy, leasing, digital intelligence, maintenance and parts, and used cars,” accelerating the global full electrification process of commercial vehicles.
Full Internationalization: Full-Value-Chain Ecological Overseas Expansion, Building Foton’s Global Influence
In May, Foton Motor’s export sales reached 10,709 vehicles, continuing to lead the industry. At the same time, the export product structure has been continuously optimized, and the export of high-value products has achieved rapid growth. Among them, Auman increased by 148% year-on-year, Aoling increased by 114% year-on-year, pickup trucks increased by 54% year-on-year, and Ouhui increased by 103% year-on-year, demonstrating strong market competitiveness.
The strong overseas sales are inseparable from the dual-brand strategy of Foton + Shidai, which achieves full technical route and product line coverage to meet the needs of users in various regional markets and scenarios. At the same time, under the guidance of the “GREEN3030” strategy, it continues to deepen its efforts in product technology, industrial layout, supply chain localization, and ecological systems.
In the fierce global market competition, Foton Motor has accumulated sufficient product development and manufacturing experience by segmenting 253 scenarios through 29 years of focus. In terms of technical routes, it has achieved full coverage of traditional fuel, pure electric, plug-in hybrid, hydrogen fuel, and hydrogen internal combustion engines, with continuous iterative upgrades of new platform products such as heavy trucks, light trucks, micro trucks, and VANs. It has possessed the ability to define the characteristics of local markets by country, region, and scenario. In terms of local marketing capabilities, Foton Motor relies on scenarios for overseas network layout planning, bringing domestic systems, models, and experiences to overseas markets. At the same time, it actively promotes collaborative development with legal entity companies and local key customers, gives full play to the role of the chain group expert system, strengthens the local customer sales, delivery, and service guarantee mechanism, and comprehensively improves overseas customer satisfaction. In promoting localization construction, Foton Motor has established 32 local factories globally, focusing on building localized manufacturing bases for components in industrial cluster markets such as the Americas, Southeast Asia, and Africa, and constructing a globally competitive quality management system through standardized process standards. In the future, with the continuous evolution of new technologies and new ecosystems, businesses such as charging and swapping energy supplementation, microgrids, leasing, digital intelligent vehicle networking, battery banks, and used cars will also unleash greater potential in international markets, creating favorable conditions for the value extension of the ecological chain and providing more possibilities for Foton Motor’s cooperation and model innovation.
Full Intelligence: Intelligent Products + AI Empowerment, Comprehensively Enhancing Industry Competitiveness
In today’s highly competitive commercial vehicle market, product homogeneity has become a difficult obstacle for many commercial vehicle enterprises. Only by unswervingly carrying out product innovation can one become the light that pierces through the haze. Foton Motor has always stood at the forefront of the industry, continuously creating intelligent products, achieving scenario-specific breakthroughs and commercial application implementations through technological innovation, and at the same time, using AI technology to empower full-domain businesses, creating an excellent management system, and continuously improving enterprise operational efficiency.
Taking heavy trucks, which represent the highest standards of the commercial vehicle industry, as an example, in the critical transition period of the industry toward intelligence and greenness, users’ needs have long exceeded the basic demands of “carrying more and running faster,” and they pay more attention to full-life cycle costs, driving comfort, safety guarantees, and technological empowerment. Foton Motor’s Auman Galaxy series products based on the “Galaxy Intelligent Architecture” are committed to “letting Chinese heavy trucks redefine world standards.” From meeting users’ basic logistics and transportation needs to helping users reduce costs and improve efficiency, Auman relies on years of confidence in leading the market, unleashes global standard technological innovation capabilities, explores new paths for the future of commercial vehicles from a forward-looking perspective, and leads global heavy trucks to build a smart transportation new ecosystem while reshaping the global heavy truck landscape. Precisely for this reason, Foton heavy trucks continued their growth momentum, selling 11,700 vehicles in May, a year-on-year increase of 73%.
The reason why the Auman Galaxy series products subvert the traditional heavy truck design concept is inseparable from their deep integration and efficient use of technology. Through full cooperation with global excellent partners such as Cummins and ZF, the Auman Galaxy series products are not only equipped with more advanced engines, gearboxes, chassis, etc., but also introduce cutting-edge technologies such as intelligence and networking, achieving a significant improvement in product performance and a remarkable enhancement in intelligence level. Especially in terms of smart technology, the Auman Galaxy series products are at the forefront of the industry. For example, the Auman Galaxy 9 and Auman Galaxy 7 are equipped with advanced HWP intelligent driving assistance systems, which can realize more than 28 intelligent driving functions such as autonomous navigation, automatic obstacle avoidance, and automatic emergency braking, greatly improving driving safety and comfort. In terms of power, the Auman Galaxy series products are equipped with the Super Power Chain 5.0, achieving excellent performance of strong power, low fuel consumption, and low emissions. This enables users to calmly face various challenges in complex and changeable transportation scenarios. In terms of vehicle networking, the Auman Galaxy series products realize real-time monitoring of vehicle status, fault diagnosis, and remote upgrades through in-vehicle intelligent terminals and cloud platforms, providing vehicle owners with a more convenient and intelligent vehicle usage experience.
From the comprehensive sales growth in May to the pursuit of world-class status with the “three comprehensives,” Foton Motor has not only set a benchmark for the high-quality development of the industry but also injected new vitality into the global commercial vehicle market with technological innovation and strategic layout. In the future, Foton Motor will continue to be guided by user needs, supported by technological breakthroughs, and led by ecological innovation to provide global users with more efficient, greener, and more intelligent commercial vehicle solutions.
