EU slaps Chinese electric vehicle maker SAIC with 36.3% tariff.

The amount was a revision to an even higher 37.6 percent tariff, which the Chinese electric vehicle maker contested after it was awarded in June. The surcharge will be applied on top of a current 10% tax that applies to all electric vehicles imported from China.

Compared to SAIC, China’s biggest electric vehicle maker BYD and Volvo’s parent Geely came away with much lower tariffs. BYD, which temporarily dethroned Tesla as the world’s best-selling electric vehicle company earlier this year, received a 17 percent tariff, while Geely saw a 19.3 percent tariff. Both automakers posted small downward revisions last week.

Tesla, which also makes cars in China, received a 9% tariff because it benefits from fewer Chinese subsidies.

SAIC’s extra-harsh tariffs result from the company’s lack of cooperation with the Brussels authorities. In a July report, the EU Commission found SAIC’s responses to a questionnaire to be “very deficient”, missing key information, including the cost of production, information on purchases of key inputs and related companies.

SAIC argued that the bloc had asked them for too much information.

The company also faced domestic challenges when the EU responded.

The electric vehicle maker did not have access to some of its suppliers’ own data and did not know the required documentation, Bloomberg reported Monday, citing people familiar with the company.

SAIC representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

The EU tariffs are a big headache for Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers, who already face a 100% import tax in the US.

Europe is an important market for Chinese players. In an August report, HSBC wrote that Chinese carmakers’ share of the European electric vehicle market could rise from just over 6% in 2023 to 10.5% by 2030 – and almost half of those sales could you come from countries outside the EU.

The tariffs are part of a protracted diplomatic battle between the EU and China over trade, national security and overproduction.

The EU accuses China of encouraging overproduction in various industries, including the green sector, and of fueling Russia’s war against Ukraine. China says the bloc is protectionist and trying to curb its economic development.