![\"Stellantis](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/netherlands\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/2026040807533348.jpg\")
(A Leapmotor B10 on display at the Shanghai Auto Show in April 2025. Image credit: CnEVPost)<\/p>\nProduction of the Opel model is expected to officially start in 2028, with a target of 50,000 vehicles a year.
\nThe deal, if finalized, would help Stellantis significantly cut the time and financial costs of developing a new EV model.<\/p>\n
(A Leapmotor B10 on display at the Shanghai Auto Show in April 2025. Image credit: CnEVPost)<\/p>\n
Stellantis NV is in advanced talks with Chinese electric vehicle (EV) maker Leapmotor to jointly develop a new electric SUV under the Opel brand, according to a Reuters report<\/a> on Wednesday.<\/p>\n The new model will use Leapmotor’s technology and is planned to be produced at Stellantis’ Zaragoza plant in Spain, the report said, citing three people familiar with the matter.<\/p>\n The deal, if finalized, would help Stellantis significantly reduce the time and cost required to develop a new EV model, the report noted.<\/p>\n The new model will share a platform with Leapmotor’s B10 compact SUV<\/a>, which will also be assembled at the Zaragoza plant later this year for the European market, Reuters cited two of the sources as saying.<\/p>\n Production of the Opel model is expected to officially begin in 2028, with a targeted annual output of 50,000 vehicles.<\/p>\n Under the terms currently in advanced discussions, Leapmotor will be responsible for supplying key core technologies and vehicle components, including electronic and electrical parts.<\/p>\n Opel will design the vehicle’s exterior, while a significant portion of the vehicle’s research and development will take place in China, one of the sources said.<\/p>\n Talks over the Opel project, internally codenamed O3U, began in late 2025, and the two sides could reach a formal agreement as early as this month, according to Reuters.<\/p>\n Stellantis has been studying the use of Leapmotor’s EV technology to develop the next-generation Opel Mokka B SUV, production of which is eventually expected to be shifted to Spain from France, the report said.<\/p>\n Stellantis has also started preliminary talks with Leapmotor on developing an Alfa Romeo model using the same architecture at the Zaragoza plant to optimize factory capacity, according to the report.<\/p>\n The potential Opel EV project is only the most advanced of several ongoing discussions between the two automakers.<\/p>\n They have also discussed other models based on Leapmotor’s architecture for smaller A-segment cars, which would require a different production line from the one in Zaragoza, the people said.<\/p>\n Stellantis invested 1.5 billion euros ($1.75 billion) in Leapmotor in October 2023<\/a> to acquire an about 20% stake, becoming the Chinese EV maker’s largest external shareholder.<\/p>\n Over the past two years, Leapmotor has entered dozens of international markets leveraging Stellantis’ sales network.<\/p>\n Beyond the collaboration in Europe, Stellantis is also weighing an early-stage business plan to produce Leapmotor EVs at an idled Canadian factory<\/a>.<\/p>\n These early discussions are primarily focused on a facility in Brampton, Ontario, which has been idled and thousands of workers laid off for years, according to a Bloomberg report on April 2.<\/p>\n This would be the first major strategic investment by Chinese capital in the Canadian auto industry since the government reached an agreement to lower tariffs on Chinese-made EVs.<\/p>\n In January, Canada agreed to exempt up to 49,000<\/a> Chinese-made EVs annually from a 100% tariff, allowing these vehicles to enjoy a 6.1% most-favored-nation tariff rate.<\/p>\n Leapmotor is one of the fastest-growing Chinese EV makers, delivering nearly 600,000 new vehicles in 2025.<\/p>\n The company generated revenue of 15 billion yuan ($2.2 billion) in 2025 and achieved its first full-year profit<\/a> on the back of strong growth.<\/p>\n The company has set a target to deliver one million vehicles in 2026<\/a> and plans to launch four new models<\/a> throughout this year.<\/p>\n
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