Recently, it was reported that Stellantis Group is considering producing Zero Run electric vehicles at the Mirafiori factory in Italy, with a planned production capacity of 150000 units. This project will be officially launched as early as 2026 or 2027, and the production of Leapmotor products at this factory is part of an agreement reached between Stellantis Group and Leapmotor. It is worth noting that the Mirafiori factory is currently the production base for Fiat 500e and Maserati. In early January, Stellantis Group announced that it will lay off approximately 2250 workers at the factory to cope with weak demand.
As of the time of publication, Zero Run Motors has not responded to the above information.
In October 2023, Zero Run Motors and Stellanis Group announced a strategic partnership. Stellanis Group invested approximately 1.5 billion euros to acquire approximately 20% equity in Zero Run Motors, becoming its strategic shareholder and obtaining two seats on the board of directors of Zero Run Motors. Meanwhile, Stellantis and Leapmotor International formed a joint venture with a 51:49 stake ratio. Except for the Greater China region, the joint venture company has the exclusive right to export and sell to all other markets worldwide, as well as to manufacture Zero Run automotive products locally.
Wu Qiang, Co President of Zero Run Motors, stated in an interview with First Financial reporters that if the sales in some overseas regional markets reach a certain level, Zero Run Motors can rely on Stellantis' global manufacturing factories to produce products.
It is reported that Leapmotor will rely on Stellantis Group's commercial layout in other global markets to increase the sales of Leapmotor's brand in the local market. It is expected that the joint venture of Leapmotor International will start its export business in the second half of 2024, and Europe will be the first overseas market for Leapmotor International's joint venture to land.
Going abroad has become one of the main ways for many Chinese car companies to alleviate domestic market competition. In 2023, the domestic automobile export volume reached 4.91 million units, becoming the world's largest automobile export country for the first time. Starting from 2024, new energy vehicle companies such as Xiaopeng, Jike, and Nezha have announced that they will further expand their layout in overseas markets.
However, in the process of Chinese car companies going global, there are not many cases of Zero Run Automobile relying on the existing marketing service system and overseas factory production capacity of large overseas car companies for product and technology output.
"Mobile phones or televisions can be exported completely. However, unlike other industries, almost every country regards automobiles as a pillar industry. Only a complete cooperation model can help China's automobiles achieve globalization." Zhu Jiangming, Chairman of Zero Run Motors, told reporters that Chinese automobile companies need to have a different deep cooperation model from the past in order to achieve globalization.
Tang Weishi, Global CEO of Stellantis Group, believes that when it comes to customs, localized production, and other issues, Zero Run may encounter some problems, which may make it difficult to penetrate overseas markets; Stellantis Group can serve as a platform to accelerate the sales speed of Zero Run overseas; The cooperation between the two companies can achieve better scale advantages and transform the economic benefits of scale into better competitiveness.
In addition, Stellantis Group has not shown strong competitiveness in the face of electrification attacks from brands such as Renault, Volkswagen, and Tesla. Wu Qiang believes that the electrification layout of various brands under Stellantis Group still needs to be improved; Zero Run's electrified products can effectively fill Stellantis's product gap in terms of cost, functionality, and product strength. Natalie Knight, Chief Financial Officer of Stellantis, has also stated that after Stellantis acquired a 20% stake in Zero Run, the group is equivalent to owning a new brand.