Within just five years, annual revenue plummeted from 6 billion yuan to just over 1 billion yuan, only to subsequently surge past 10 billion yuan... This represents a remarkably uncommon V-shaped operational performance curve. Even more surprising is that this trajectory was largely the result of the company's own deliberate strategic choices.
The company is SANY Truck, a global "unicorn" in the heavy-duty truck sector. Behind this V-shaped curve lies a series of critical corporate decisions: pivoting全力 towards electric vehicle R&D while燃油车 sales were still at their peak; deepening core technological capabilities even as internet-driven marketing models captured the market; and坚持 creating greater value through极致 service offerings when the industry descended into price wars.
Despite frequently uncertain prospects, SANY Truck made each choice decisively, often without leaving itself a fallback option. In the fiercely competitive market, such daring "unicorns" continuously demonstrate vitality and remarkable resilience.
At the SANY Intelligent Connected Heavy-Duty Truck Industrial Park in Changsha, Hunan, production activity is in full swing. Here, an electric heavy-duty truck rolls off the assembly line every six minutes, with rows of blue-liveried vehicles creating an impressive sight across the facility. In 2025, SANY Truck's domestic sales of electric heavy-duty trucks grew 125% year-on-year.
However, in the early spring of 2021, SANY Truck Chairman Liang Linhe felt a chill seeing the dismal "all-red" performance indicators. Within the SANY Group, business unit performance is color-coded red, yellow, blue, and green. "All red" signified that every metric was below target—a situation SANY Truck had never before encountered.
Established in 2017 under the engineering machinery giant SANY Group, SANY Truck quickly emerged as a leading player among the "new forces" in heavy-duty trucks, swiftly ascending to leadership within the industry's second tier. By 2020, its revenue had reached 6 billion yuan.
At the peak of this growth momentum, the group made a monumental decision: in 2021, SANY Truck would fully commit to electrification, completely ceasing production and sales of燃油 vehicles in the domestic market. This move sparked waves of skepticism both internally and externally.
Why would a company voluntarily dismantle a successful 6-billion-yuan燃油车 business? Was the outlook for new energy heavy-duty trucks clear enough to warrant such a shift? Could they not operate both燃油 and electric vehicles concurrently? Luo Changguo, then General Manager of SANY Truck, believed that competing against established players with decades of technical积累 and mature sales networks would be exceedingly difficult. He viewed the new energy heavy-duty truck sector as a "long slope, wide road, and thick snow"—a赛道 where changing lanes offered the only chance to overtake.
Nevertheless, the转型阵痛 proved more severe than anticipated. In 2021 and 2022, SANY Truck's revenue fell sharply to over 3 billion yuan and just over 1 billion yuan, respectively—a "cliff-like decline" that led to the departure of several executives and key technical staff.
"We left ourselves no retreat!" Luo Changguo stated. After committing to the transition, SANY Truck channeled nearly all its resources into electric heavy-duty trucks, restructuring its industrial layout around electrification, constructing dedicated production bases, and aggressively recruiting and cultivating R&D talent for electric vehicles.
Ye Lei, R&D Manager at SANY Truck's Electrification Division, witnessed the transformation firsthand. He revealed that SANY Truck had initially formed an electric vehicle project team in 2018, but it was disbanded shortly thereafter due to the rapid growth of the燃油车 business. Post-2021, with a clear development path and increased electrification investment, the team was determined to develop products capable of competing with燃油 trucks.
Looking back over four years, despite the "chilly spring," SANY Truck似乎 had sensed the "warming waters." Starting precisely in 2021, the new energy vehicle industry, particularly in passenger vehicles, finally reached its "风口" after years of adjustment. SANY Truck subsequently entered a phase of迅猛 development.
In 2023, with a valuation of 14 billion yuan, SANY Truck debuted on the "Hurun Global Unicorn List." By 2024, its revenue had rebounded to pre-transition peak levels, with its market share in new energy heavy-duty trucks leading the industry. In 2025, the company's revenue exceeded 10 billion yuan.
"Had the transition been hesitant, we might have failed at both燃油 and electric vehicles, and certainly would not have achieved the rapid growth of the past two years," reflected Liang Linhe.
On June 28, 2025, at the Changsha Economic Development Zone, SANY Truck launched its first electric heavy-duty truck specifically designed for express delivery干线. Dozens of clients observing the new model on the intelligent manufacturing production line and at fast-charging stations scrutinized its parameters with keen interest.
Features such as a 500-kilometer ultra-long range, megawatt-level fast charging, innovative battery-under-chassis design, operational costs over 50% lower than燃油 trucks, and an L2-level辅助驾驶系统 constituted a "hardcore" demonstration of SANY Truck's electrification technology.
In its early days, however, SANY Truck was not particularly known for its technological prowess. Five or six years prior, the term most frequently associated with the company was "internet思维." It had then created several hit products through business models involving drivers and suppliers in co-development and online pre-sales.
Returning to SANY Truck today, the conversation has shifted markedly towards "technological innovation." Chairman Liang Linhe noted that during the electrification transition, the company realized that business models and technological innovation must advance together, with paramount importance placed on technological breakthroughs and quality enhancement.
The core components of electric and燃油 trucks differ fundamentally; "死磕" technology started from the basics—a single screw, a gear in a truck axle. Zhou Liang, Director of SANY Commercial Vehicle Intelligent Manufacturing Production Management, recalled numerous challenges in adapting batteries to vehicles during the initial production of electric heavy-duty trucks. Sometimes, teams comprising R&D, manufacturing, quality inspection engineers, and suppliers worked until 2 or 3 a.m. to align a single screw hole, making连夜调试和改进.
Mastering key electrification technologies was even more daunting. Of the over 400 R&D personnel in SANY Truck's Product Research Institute, more than 50% work directly on the "three electrics" (battery, electric drive, electric control). He Qi, Dean of the Institute, emphasized that SANY Truck insists on developing in-house capabilities in batteries, electric drives, electric controls, and thermal management systems. "Only this way can we achieve perfect alignment between battery performance and vehicle operating conditions," he said.
Customers focus on which trucks are more energy-efficient, have longer range, or can carry more cargo. Through continuous technological innovation, SANY Truck has consistently launched more competitive products.
In June 2023, equipped with SANY's self-developed Mota battery, an SANY electric heavy-duty truck achieved a single-charge range of 817.5 kilometers, setting a world record for the longest distance traveled by a semi-trailer electric truck on one charge. In 2024, leveraging lightweight and low-energy-consumption technologies, the SANY Jiangshan 425 model sold over 5,000 units.
SANY Truck has "stockpiled" dozens of similar innovative technologies, including new powertrain systems that effectively reduce truck jerkiness and semi-solid-state batteries offering extended range.
Within SANY Truck's intelligent manufacturing workshop, over 200 industrial robots are deployed. Zhou Liang, who once fretted over a single screw, now tours the facility with confidence: "For different application scenarios, we have achieved technological leadership in areas like low energy consumption, high reliability, long range, and fast charging."
Not long ago, the office of a Hunan-based transport company was crowded with sales representatives from six major heavy-duty truck manufacturers. Each was竭力推销 their products to secure a large order from the client, illustrating the白热化 competition in the heavy-duty truck market.
Ultimately, the order was won by Cao Ruping, a "post-00s" direct sales manager from SANY Truck. He remarked that competition now extends beyond price, product, and technology to include superior service and providing customized solutions for clients.
The traditional heavy-duty truck industry typically relies on an agent-based marketing and service model. However, the primary buyers of new energy heavy-duty trucks are large clients. Upon entering this field, SANY Truck initiated a new approach—adopting a "direct sales, direct service" model.
Currently, SANY Truck has established a comprehensive direct sales network and dispatched over 600 direct service engineers who are long-term "resident" at client fleet sites. "We promise a 15-minute response time, on-site arrival within 2 hours, and resolution of general faults within 24 hours," stated Xie Lianlian, a Direct Service Engineer at SANY Truck Marketing Company.
At SANY Truck, from senior executives to frontline staff, the pursuit of service excellence borders on "偏执." For instance, the most pressure-inducing topic at the daily morning meeting is the reporting and handling of customer complaints. If a vehicle故障 cannot be repaired quickly, the company不惜代价 dispatches a replacement vehicle from headquarters to ensure the client's operations continue uninterrupted.
Hunan Shuntu Logistics Technology Co., mainly engaged in building materials transportation, purchased nearly 100 electric tractors from SANY Truck in 2025. Many of its drivers, accustomed to燃油 trucks and aggressive acceleration/braking, were unfamiliar with operating electric trucks featuring energy recovery systems. SANY Truck service engineers conducted over 10 on-site training sessions to teach drivers how to operate the electric vehicles efficiently and reduce power consumption.
Deng Shunhao, General Manager of Shuntu Logistics, noted that精细控制 of energy consumption has reduced the fleet's operating costs by 30% over more than six months, bolstering the company's confidence in electric heavy-duty trucks.
Creating greater value in the service环节 represents the rising end of the "smile curve." It is understood that SANY Truck's products are priced 10,000 to 20,000 yuan higher than many competitors, yet 80% of new vehicle sales come from repeat purchases by existing clients.
Luo Changguo believes the direct sales and service team is a invaluable asset, collectively forming a competitive "moat." Today, SANY Truck's sales and service network is expanding globally.
Since 2025, Chairman Liang Linhe has visited 11 countries, including the UAE, Brazil, and Australia. He observes strong overseas client interest in electric heavy-duty trucks, with some regional markets poised for explosive growth.
With a global perspective, SANY Truck has set an ambitious target—achieving 50 billion yuan in annual revenue within five years. "We will steadfastly continue on the path of technological leadership, electrification, and globalization," Liang Linhe concluded as the interview ended. Without pausing, he departed for another client meeting.
Comments