*

BYD, Geely and SAIC file court challenges to EU tariffs

*

Chinese industry body CCCME has also filed a complaint

*

European Commission says technical contact with China

continues

(Updates Jan. 23 story with CCCME statement in paragraph 7)

By Philip Blenkinsop

BRUSSELS, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Chinese electric vehicle

makers BYD, Geely and SAIC

have challenged the EU's import tariffs at the Court of Justice

of the European Union (CJEU), filings on the court's website

showed on Thursday.

The EU imposed tariffs on China-made EVs at the end of

October after an anti-subsidy investigation, including 17.0% for

BYD, 18.8% for Geely and 35.3% for SAIC, on top of the EU's

standard car import duty of 10%.

Court filings show all three lodged their complaints at the

General Court, the lower of two CJEU chambers, on Tuesday, a day

before the deadline for filing challenges. Proceedings at the

General Court last on average 18 months and can be appealed.

No further details of the cases were given.

The China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of

Machinery and Electronic Products (CCCME), an industry body that

has represented Chinese EV producers, also filed a complaint on

Wednesday, the Chinese Chamber of Commerce to the EU (CCCEU)

said.

The CCCEU urged Beijing and Brussels to negotiate a

compromise to avoid tariffs. The two have been in talks about

possible minimum price commitments since September.

In a statement on Friday, the CCCME confirmed its action on

behalf of "authorised companies" and pledged to "continue to

represent China's EV industry through judicial litigation and

resolutely defend the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese

EV companies."

The European Commission said it was aware of the cases and

had two months and 10 days to prepare its defence, adding that

technical contact with Beijing was continuing.

It is not clear if there have also been challenges from

other EV makers, including European firms producing in China.

The challenges are likely to include arguments over the

assessment of subsidies, the establishment of injury to EU

industry and the Commission's unusual decision to launch a case

on its own, rather than following an industry complaint.

SAIC is expected to take issue with its far higher tariff.

This followed a determination that it did not cooperate with the

investigation, allowing the Commission to fill in missing

sections with selected available facts.

China-based EV makers have also complained that Tesla

, the largest exporter of EVs from China into the EU,

was not included in the official sample, from which the rate for

other companies is calculated. The sampled companies were BYD,

Geely and SAIC.

Tesla secured the lowest extra tariff of 7.8%. If it had

been part of the sample, cooperating companies would have

benefited from a lower tariff than the 20.7% they now face.