Geely and Renault Sign Agreement for Joint Cooperation in South Korea

Renault Group and Geely Holding Group have signed an agreement to collaborate in bringing fuel-efficient hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) and internal combustion engine (ICE) models to the South Korean market, as well as for export sales. The vehicles will be produced at the Renault-Samsung facility in Busan, South Korea, with production forecast to begin in 2024.

These new products will utilize the compact modular architecture (CMA) of Chinese auto giant Geely, developed by its R&D center in Sweden, and will take advantage of the its advanced hybrid powertrain technologies. The partnership also forms part of French auto giant Renault’s “Renaulution” program.

While vehicles will be initially designed specifically for the South Korean market, Renault-Samsung will allow for their export in the future.

Renault’s performance in the Chinese market has not been satisfactory. In April 2020, Renault announced that it would terminate its cooperation with Chinese firm Dongfeng Motor, thus withdrawing from the country’s passenger car market. In the field of commercial vehicles, a joint venture between Renault and another Chinese firm, Brilliance Auto, faced a bankruptcy crisis at the end of last year.

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In the context of an ongoing chip shortage and the COVID-19 pandemic, Renault’s global sales volume has been declining for three consecutive years. This partnership with Geely will provide key support in Renault’s efforts to stage a comeback in the Asian market.