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Stellantis-backed Zhejiang Leapmotor Technology has become the first Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer to receive investment from a state-owned enterprise amid the strong popularity of its affordable intelligent cars.
FAW Group, mainland China’s oldest carmaker, has agreed to acquire a 5 per cent stake in the Hong Kong-listed EV assembler for 3.74 billion yuan (US$534 million) by buying an additional 74.8 million shares at HK$55.29 apiece, according to a stock exchange filing by Leapmotor.
The landmark equity outlay by FAW underscores growing investor confidence in Leapmotor, in which Stellantis owns a 19 per cent stake, despite analysts’ bearish sales forecast for mainland China’s car market, the world’s largest.
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“Leapmotor aims to achieve annual deliveries of 4 million units a year in 10 years’ time,” founder and CEO Zhu Jiangming said at a media briefing on Monday in its headquarters in Hangzhou. “Leapmotor will strengthen our value through the fine-tuning of our production, while offering customers best [driving] experiences.”
Reaching that annual delivery volume would enable Leapmotor to slip into the ranks of the world’s top 10 car vendors.
Zhejiang Leapmotor Technology CEO Zhu Jiangming attends the opening of a company showroom in Hong Kong on June 11, 2025. Photo: Reuters alt=Zhejiang Leapmotor Technology CEO Zhu Jiangming attends the opening of a company showroom in Hong Kong on June 11, 2025. Photo: Reuters>
The latest investment would also pave the way for FAW to jointly develop new EV models with Leapmotor, vice-president Li Tengfei said in the press briefing. That would enhance management efficiency at Leapmotor and help raise brand awareness, Li added.
Leapmotor was expected to deliver 1 million vehicles in 2026, which would translate into a more than 60 per cent year-on-year sales increase, according to Zhu.
Achieving sales of 1 million units next year would likely vault Leapmotor into the No 3 spot among mainland’s largest EV makers, behind BYD and Geely, according to analysts.
Founded in 2015, Leapmotor has become well known for its smart EVs with similar features to Tesla’s Shanghai-made Model 3 and Model Y vehicles, but at less than half the price.
This year, Leapmotor has been one of the top vendors on the mainland’s cutthroat EV market, as full-year sales are expected to exceed the 600,000-unit mark.
In the first 11 months of 2025, the company delivered a total of 536,132 vehicles to customers at home and abroad, a 113 per cent year-on-year increase.
Employees work on an electric vehicle at Leapmotor’s production line in Jinhua, a city in eastern Zhejiang province. Photo: AFP alt=Employees work on an electric vehicle at Leapmotor’s production line in Jinhua, a city in eastern Zhejiang province. Photo: AFP>
Overseas sales were expected to account for 10 per cent of Leapmotor’s revenue in 2026, which would be double its export sales this year, according to chief operating officer Xu Jun.
Leapmotor’s upbeat outlook was in stark contrast to those of analysts who predicted that China’s automotive market in 2026 would witness its first contraction since 2020, owing to the industry’s overcapacity woes and softening government support.
Deutsche Bank analysts last month forecast that total vehicle deliveries in China would plunge 5 per cent in 2026. In October, JPMorgan projected total China car sales – both petrol-based and EVs – would drop between 3 per cent and 5 per cent next year.
At a ceremony to celebrate the carmaker’s 10-year anniversary on Sunday, Leapmotor unveiled its plan to move up the value chain with the launch of its premium D-series cars. It expected to start delivery of the D19, which features extended-range battery technology, in April.
The D19 was designed with an 80-kilowatt-hour battery pack, the most powerful of its kind for an EV, that offered a 500km range before switching to hybrid mode. Extended-range electric cars use a small internal combustion engine to generate additional power to charge the battery when needed.
This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP’s Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright © 2025 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
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