Leapmotor, one of China’s strongest-performing electric vehicle (EV) makers this year, has taken a major step towards building cars locally for European customers after agreeing with shareholder Stellantis to add a production line at a Spanish plant previously earmarked for Opel. The Hangzhou-based company and Stellantis, owner of Peugeot, Fiat and Jeep, would jointly build Opel’s new fully electric C-sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and B10 models at the Figueruelas plant in Zaragoza, according to a statement released by the Franco-Italian carmaker. Production was expected to start as early as this year, it added. The announcement came less than two months after Leapmotor opened its first overseas research and development (R&D) hub in Munich, aimed at tailoring models to international customers.
The EV maker, 21% owned by Stellantis, set up a joint venture known as Leapmotor International with the European shareholder in 2023 to promote its Chinese-made cars worldwide. The venture, 49% owned by Leapmotor, leverages Stellantis’ global resources to bolster sales. “Leapmotor, after achieving rapid growth on the domestic market, has reason to quicken the pace of its overseas expansion because its tie-up with Stellantis facilitates localization of production in markets like Europe,” said Gao Shen, an independent analyst in Shanghai. “Stellantis also needs Chinese EV technologies to enhance its competitiveness.” Stellantis said new Opel-branded electric SUVs built at the plant would become more affordable through its partnership with Leapmotor as the two companies joined efforts to improve supply chain efficiency.
The deal adds to evidence that Chinese EV makers, facing overcapacity at home, are increasingly adopting an asset-light strategy to assemble cars abroad at lower cost, often using idled facilities abandoned by international marques. Under a typical asset-light strategy, a company holds only a small amount of fixed assets on its balance sheet. In late March, Leapmotor founder and CEO Zhu Jiangming said deliveries outside China could exceed 150,000 units in 2026, up from a previous target of 100,000 set in December. Total sales this year were expected to surpass 1 million vehicles, a 40% increase from 2025, he added.
Leapmotor, which sells midsize smart EVs at roughly half the price of comparable Tesla models, has expanded its overseas footprint through knock-down (KD) assembly. It began producing its B10 SUVs at a KD plant in Myanmar in March and operates a similar line in Malaysia. Exports surged nearly 400% last year to 67,052 units, helped by its partnership with Stellantis. Leapmotor is now subject to a 20.7% additional duty on top of the standard 10% tariff if it sells its Chinese-made pure electric cars in the European Union. Local production will help it avoid the duties and sharpen its price competitiveness. In China, the carmaker reported record deliveries of 71,387 units last month, up 74% year-on-year. From January to April, the company handed a total 181,542 vehicles to customers around the globe, up 41.2% year-on-year, the South China Morning Post reports.
