Stellantis eyes partnership with China's Leapmotor for Opel EV launch

Stellantis is in advanced discussions with Chinese automaker Leapmotor to jointly develop an Opel-branded electric SUV, which would leverage Leapmotor’s technology and be produced at Stellantis’ Zaragoza plant in Spain, three sources told Reuters, News.Az reports.

If finalised, the deal would help Stellantis reduce both the cost and time required to develop a new EV model, as the French-Italian automaker shifts focus toward petrol-electric hybrid vehicles.

Earlier this year, Stellantis announced a $25 billion writedown after scaling back its EV plans. The partnership also aims to fend off competition from BYD and other Chinese brands in Europe, while improving the utilisation rate at Stellantis’ European factories. Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa, who assumed the role last June, is set to present a new long-term business plan on May 21.

Stellantis formed a partnership with Leapmotor after acquiring roughly a fifth of the Chinese company in 2023. The two also operate a joint venture, Leapmotor International, responsible for sales and production of Leapmotor vehicles outside China.

The new Opel SUV would share a common architecture with Leapmotor’s B10 compact SUV, which will also be produced later this year at the Zaragoza plant for the European market, according to two sources. Production of the Opel model is expected to begin in 2028, targeting an annual output of 50,000 vehicles.

Under the proposed arrangement, Leapmotor would supply key technologies and components, including electronic and electrical parts, while Opel would design the vehicle’s exterior. A significant portion of the development work would take place in China.

Discussions over the Opel project, codenamed O3U, began in late 2025, and an agreement could be reached as early as this month, one source said. Details of these advanced talks have not been previously reported.

In a statement, Stellantis said the company has “regular engagement” with Leapmotor on expanding collaboration but declined to provide further details. Leapmotor told Reuters it is in discussions with partners, including Stellantis, on supplying self-developed components, but said there are no plans for platform-level collaboration. The Chinese automaker did not respond to requests for comment on the Opel EV plans, including production timelines and output targets.

Last month, Leapmotor said it expects to begin mass production of its vehicles in Spain from October, with certain projects with Stellantis in “advanced negotiation stages.”

News.Az 

By Nijat Babayev