On May 8, it was reported that Zhu Jiangming, chairman of Leapmotor, and Tang Weishi, CEO of Stellantis Group, will jointly hold a press conference next week to announce the establishment of a "Leap International" joint venture.
In October last year, Leapmotor announced that Stellantis plans to invest about 1.5 billion euros to acquire a 20% stake in Leapmotor and establish a joint venture with a 51%:49% stake ratio to focus on markets outside Greater China.
The joint venture, Leapmotor International, will be solely responsible for the export, sales and local manufacturing of Leapmotor vehicles in other markets around the world.
Zhu Jiangming said in March that the joint venture's senior management team has been formed and it expects to start exporting in the second half of 2024, with the goal of selling 500,000 vehicles outside the Chinese market by 2030.
In the next three years, Leapmotor plans to launch "pure electric + extended range dual power" smart cars from A-class to E-class based on one technical architecture and three vehicle platforms, so as to enhance its competitiveness in overseas markets.
By taking a stake in Leapmotor, Stellantis will not only be able to participate deeply in China's new energy vehicle market, but also leverage China's mature new energy supply chain and advanced technologies to accelerate its electrification transformation in the global market.
The establishment of the joint venture is seen as an important step in Stellantis' strategic layout in the global electric vehicle field, which will help it expand its presence and market share in China, the world's largest new energy vehicle market, as well as other parts of the world.