Auto giant Stellantis has joined hands with Chinese electric car maker Leapmotor to form the ‘Leapmotor International’ brand. It’s a 51:49 Stellantis-led company that plans to provide affordable electric vehicles in Europe, India & Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa and South America. The brand has confirmed that it will start operations in the aforementioned markets by Q4 2024, starting in Europe. In October 2023, Stellantis invested €1.5 billion (approx ₹13,500 crore) and acquired 21 per cent equity in Leapmotor and that deal also outlined the formation of Leapmotor International. With the help of Stellantis, the brand plans to boost scale 'very quickly’ in the targeted markets.
Stellantis' global CEO, Carlos Tavares said that, “We are now going to go live. We are now in the planning phase to go to the markets and start exporting vehicles out of China to the rest of the world. And as we said this morning, planning is 10 per cent, and execution is 90 per cent. So, we are entering the execution part of our deal. With the combination of the nine European countries, plus the three additional regions, we expect to bring a significant growth of Leapmotor models.”
On the benefits of this joint venture, Tavares said that “Affordability is right now the number one problem with EV expansion worldwide. With Leapmotor, we are going to be able to bring faster to our markets affordable EVs that will not only contribute to the profitable growth of Stellantis, but of course, they will also contribute faster and in a more efficient way to fixing the global warming issue that we have to fix as humanity,” he added.
Leapmotor International will start its European operations with the T03 small electric hatchback and the C10 mid-size crossover. The T03 gets a WLTP-claimed 265km range and 'B-segment comparable interior space'. On the other hand, the C10 boasts a WLTP-claimed 420km range and a 5-star E-NCAP safety rating. The brand has also confirmed that it will introduce at least one new model every year in the next three years, including two hatchbacks and SUVs.
While the brand hasn't confirmed which models will start it's India innings yet, Stellantis' global CEO, Carlos Tavares, has stated that, "Each time we are facing severe custom duties, it’s a good opportunity for us to use the manufacturing footprint of the Stellantis group inside the bubble, so we are very keen in creating that opportunity for Leapmotor International, if that makes economic sense, so there is no limitation for Leapmotor International to use our manufacturing footprint inside India." So we can expect the Leapmotor International models to be made alongside Jeep or Citroen products in India.