On May 14, after 200 days of negotiations, equity closings and regulatory approvals, Stellantis Group and Leapmotor jointly announced that the two companies have approved an agreement to establish Leapmotor International B.V. (hereinafter referred to as "Leapmotor International"), which also marks the official completion of the establishment of the joint venture company, Leapmotor International.
According to the announcement, Leapmotor International is 51% owned by Stellantis Group and 49% owned by Leapmotor, and its headquarters is located in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Zhu Jiangming, chairman of Leapmotor, is the chairman of the joint venture, and Xin Tianshu, vice president of Stellantis Group China, is the CEO of the joint venture.
The joint venture has exclusive rights to export, sell and manufacture Leapmotor products in all markets around the world except Greater China.
From "bringing in" to "going out"
Under the wave of electrification, it has become a new choice for foreign car companies such as Volkswagen and Toyota to start cooperation with Chinese car companies on electrification transformation. Among the cooperation between many multinational car companies, the cooperation model between Stellantis Group and Leapmotor is relatively unique.
The partnership between the two stems from six months ago, as early as October 2023, Stellantis announced plans to invest about 1.5 billion euros in Leapmotor to acquire about 21% of the equity of Leapmotor. This investment not only demonstrates Stellantis Group's confidence in the Chinese electric vehicle market, but also marks the beginning of a new chapter in the global cooperation between the two companies.
At the same time, the two companies plan to establish a joint venture called Leapmotor International. The joint venture has exclusive export and sales to all other markets around the world, as well as the exclusive right to manufacture Leapmotor products locally.
Twenty-five days after the announcement, the two parties announced the completion of the relevant equity closing, and appointed Grégoire Olivier and Douglas Ostermann of Stellantis Group as non-executive directors of Leapmotor. Half a year after the official announcement, Leaprun International was officially established and started operation.
Different from the previous model in which foreign companies provided technical and management experience, and Chinese companies provided market access and localization support, in the Leapmotor International Joint Venture, China's new energy vehicle manufacturer Leapmotor played the role of brand and product export, marking the transformation of China's automotive industry from "bringing in" to "going out".
Take what you need and go both ways
Some people may ask: one is the world's leading automaker, and the other is a new car-making force that has not yet achieved profitability, why can the two form a CP?
Unlike Volkswagen's investment in Xpeng Motors to enhance the competitiveness of its products in the Chinese market, Tang Weishi, Global CEO of Stellantis Group, emphasized that "the current stage of the joint venture is to increase the sales of Leapmotor models around the world and sell Leapmotor models to markets outside China. In short, Leapmotor will continue to play a leading role in technology research and development and providing internationally competitive products within the joint venture.
According to the previous plan, Stellantis Group will invest more than 50 billion euros in electrification to achieve the electrification goals of its "Dare Forward 2030" strategic plan: by 2030, all passenger cars sold in Europe will be fully electric, and 50% of passenger cars and light trucks sold in the United States will be fully electric.
In Tang's view, the partnership with Leapmotor can expand Stellantis' global electrification model, advance the group's electrification strategy, and increase profits for both parties. Economics is the primary issue for Stellantis in its global expansion of electric vehicles, and Leapmotor International can help the traditional multinational automotive group that is in the process of transformation accelerate the launch of cost-effective electric vehicle products. The cooperation with Leapmotor can continue to consolidate the asset-light strategy, while transforming the business model and exploring export opportunities.
For Leaprun, if it wants to expand the global market, it also needs a suitable partner to empower it. Stellantis Group's channel resources in various mature networks such as sales, finance, insurance, and services can help Leapmotor quickly seize the market and enable the brand to develop globally. The cooperation with Stellantis Group will not only allow Leapmotor to enjoy Stellantis' endorsement in overseas markets, but also make use of its production bases and sales channels around the world to avoid the policy risks of China's electric vehicles in some markets and quickly expand overseas business in an asset-light model.
Zhu Jiangming pointed out that LeapRun's current business model is mainly divided into three parts: first, the Chinese local market; Second, in the global market, driven by Stellantis' overseas distributors, the "1+1>2" product promotion effect can be realized; Third, its core components, including platform-based partnerships, can be sold to Stellantis and many other OEMs.
First stop at sea: 9 European countries
It is reported that Leapmotor International will have the exclusive right to carry out Leapmotor export and sales business to all other markets in the world outside of Greater China and manufacture Leapmotor products locally.
According to the official plan, with the help of the distribution channels of Stellantis Group, Leapmotor International will launch Leapmotor in 9 European markets from September this year in France, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Greece and Romania.
According to Tang Weishi, Leaprun International also has a full-time business leader for the above-mentioned markets, and plans to expand a total of 200 sales outlets, including the Stellantis&You network, by the end of this year, and expand the sales network to 500 by 2026. The realization of this goal will enhance the brand influence and market share of Leapmotor, and provide a foundation for its competition in the global automotive market.
In terms of models, according to Zhu Jiangming, Leapmotor International will take the lead in launching two global models, the B-class T03 and the A00-class intelligent pure electric vehicle C10, in the European market. In addition, starting in the fourth quarter of 2024, Leapmotor International plans to launch new models in Turkey, Israel and French overseas territories in the Middle East and Africa region, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand and Malaysia in India and the Asia-Pacific region, and Brazil and Chile in South America.
In the next three years, Leapmotor International plans to launch at least one new model every year. In the first quarter of next year, the company plans to launch the A12 and A03 C-segment models, followed by the T05 and T11 models.
In the era of profound changes in the global automotive industry, China's new car-making forces, represented by Leapmotor, are opening a new chapter of internationalization with their technological strength and global vision. With the establishment of Leapmotor International, Leapmotor is expected to open up a new blue ocean in overseas markets, and its development prospects are worth looking forward to.