Global motoring powerhouse Stellantis will ship and sell vehicles from fast-growing Chinese car maker Leapmotor in Europe as part of a €1.5 billion (£1.3bn) investment deal.
Taking a 20% stake in the firm – which gives it two board of directors seats – the move also creates the Stellantis-majority-owned Leapmotor International, under which the models will be sold outside of China. Shipments are expected to begin in the second half of 2024.
Stellantis – which owns, among others, Citroën, Peugeot and Vauxhall – has told Autocar that "there are no plans about models at this stage" when asked to confirm which Leapmotor vehicles will be sold in Europe.
Currently, Leapmotor, which sold 111,000 cars in 2022, offers the Fiat 500-rivalling T03 city EV for the equivalent of £7437, the Tesla Model Y-rivalling C11 SUV (£19,437) and BMW i4-rivalling C01 (£22,167). All sit on one scalable platform and over the next three years this is expected to be a base for a new range of cars that will allow the brand to cover all segments, from A to E.
In China, the C01 and C11 are also sold in range-extending plug-in hybrid forms, but given the move is part of Stellantis's push towards its Dare Forward 2030 electrification targets, it is expected that only the EVs will be exported from China.
One of the key interests in Leapmotor is its technology arm. The brand is at the forefront of autonomous driving technology in China and has a major focus on creating and utilising next-generation computing power for future EVs.
Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares said: “As consolidation unfolds among the capable electric vehicles start-ups in China, it becomes increasingly apparent that a handful of efficient and agile new-generation EV players, like Leapmotor, will come to dominate the mainstream segments in China.
“We feel it’s the perfect time to take a leading role in supporting the global expansion plans of Leapmotor, one of the most impressive new EV players, who has a similar tech-first, entrepreneurial mindset to ours.
Add your comment