Stellantis Plans to Open Its Spanish Factories to China's Leapmotor
The French automotive group Stellantis announced on Friday, May 8, that it intends to further deepen its strategic cooperation with Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer Leapmotor, planning to allow Leapmotor to produce vehicles at two of its factories in Spain and jointly develop a new all-electric SUV under the Opel brand. Meanwhile, Stellantis is also considering allowing Leapmotor to take equity stakes in its Madrid factory, making it a co-owner of the facility.
According to AFP, if this plan is ultimately realized, it would mark the first time a European automaker has granted partial ownership of an automobile plant to a Chinese carmaker—a move seen as a major shift in the landscape of Europe’s automotive industry.
Currently, average production capacity utilization rates at European assembly plants are only around 50%. Amid rising tariffs imposed by Europe on imported Chinese EVs, many Chinese automakers are seeking "localization" of production to circumvent trade barriers, while traditional European automakers urgently need to improve factory utilization and reduce EV costs.
Besides Stellantis, Volkswagen in Germany and Ford’s plant in Spain are also exploring similar collaboration models.
Leapmotor to Enter Spain’s Production Ecosystem
Under Stellantis’ announced plan, Leapmotor could begin producing its B10 model at the Saragossa factory in Spain as early as 2026. At the same time, both companies will jointly develop and manufacture a new Opel-branded SUV.
In addition, Stellantis is considering assembling one or more Leapmotor models at its Villaverde factory in Madrid.
Furthermore, Stellantis is evaluating whether to include partial equity from the Madrid factory within the joint venture structure established with Leapmotor. Currently, this joint venture is owned 51% by Stellantis and 49% by Leapmotor.
As planned, Leapmotor will begin assembling electric vehicles for the European and global markets in Madrid starting in 2028, gradually meeting the “Made in Europe” requirements—increasing use of local components—to avoid high EU tariffs on imported Chinese electric vehicles.
Stellantis emphasized that this transition holds “special significance,” as the current production of Citroën C4 at the Madrid plant will be discontinued.
Previously, Stellantis announced the closure of its automotive operations in Poissy, located in the Paris region, sparking ongoing concerns across the French industrial sector.
German Engineering + Chinese Technology: Opel to Launch a “Sino-German” SUV
According to project plans, starting in 2028, a 100% electric Opel large SUV will be produced at the Figueruelas factory in Spain. This facility is one of Opel’s oldest production bases, having manufactured over 10 million Opel Corsa vehicles since 1982.
The new SUV will be primarily designed by Opel’s German team but developed collaboratively by international R&D teams based in China and Germany, incorporating Leapmotor’s electric vehicle platform and battery technology.
Stellantis stressed that the high competitiveness of China’s supply chain will help lower the cost of this model, enhancing its price competitiveness in the European market.
The group also stated that the new model’s development cycle is expected to be compressed to “less than two years”—significantly aligning with the rapid R&D pace typical of Chinese automakers. In contrast, traditional European automakers typically require more than four years to develop a new model. Stellantis said Opel will serve as a pioneer of the “Sino-European joint development model” within the group, which may later be extended to more brands and models.
Xavier Chéreau, Chairman of Opel’s Supervisory Board, said: “This project combines German engineering excellence with the global speed of innovation.”
Stellantis Accelerates Leveraging China’s EV Ecosystem
Stellantis also announced its intention to expand joint procurement cooperation with Leapmotor, fully leveraging China’s new energy vehicle supply chain to enhance the competitiveness of its European EV products and accelerate the launch of new models.
In October 2023, Stellantis acquired a 20% stake in Leapmotor and established an international joint venture responsible for overseas sales of the Leapmotor brand. To date, this joint venture has set up over 850 sales and service outlets across Europe and exported more than 40,000 vehicles to Europe by 2025, including the affordable T03 compact electric car.
Source: rfi
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1864682620313609/
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