Stellantis' Leapmotor begins exports to Europe

LEAPMOTOR International, a 51:49 per cent Stellantis-led company, has shipped its first batch of electric vehicles from Shanghai to European ports.

The shipment of C10 SUV and T03 hatch models marks a significant milestone in the partnership between Stellantis and Leapmotor, demonstrating it says a shared commitment to “quickly providing sustainable mobility and innovation to the European EV Market”.

Leapmotor is China’s fourth-largest new energy vehicle startup by sales as of June 2024, and is expected to be headed to Australia – possibly before the end of this year.

“The shipment of Leapmotor C10 and T03 vehicles to Europe this month is a landmark moment in the partnership between Stellantis and Leapmotor,” said Stellantis chief executive officer Carlos Tavares.

“This demonstrates our commitment to providing innovative, affordable and sustainable mobility solutions to our customers.

“Relying on Stellantis’ strong business assets in Europe and the hard work of our companies’ teams on guaranteeing product innovation and quality, I strongly believe Leapmotor’s electric vehicles will be widely accepted by European customers.

“We are excited about the opportunities this partnership brings and look forward to a successful journey together.”

In echoing the sentiments of Mr Tavares, Leapmotor founder, chairman, and chief executive officer Zhu Jiangming said his company’s products will offer value for money to Stellantis’ European customers.

“As of the first half of July, Leapmotor has cumulatively sold over 400,000 EVs in China since the company’s first sale,” he said.

“China is the biggest and most competitive EV market in the world and our products have proved their value by being acclaimed by the local customers.

“Since the very beginning, the C10 and T03 models are designed to meet the high standards of global customers, and we are confident the collaboration between Stellantis and Leapmotor will drive significant growth for both companies.”

Leveraging Stellantis’ distribution channels, Leapmotor plans to increase sales centres in Europe to 500 by 2026 from 200 at the end of 2024.

The Chinese marque says it is dedicated to pushing the boundaries of innovation and sustainability in the automotive industry, and this shipment is “just the beginning of a long-term collaboration aimed at transforming the landscape of mobility in Europe and beyond”.

Stellantis and Leapmotor confirmed that it will launch one new Leapmotor model per year for the next three years.