(Yicai) May 15 -- Leapmotor has established a joint venture with auto giant Stellantis to promote the Chinese electric vehicle startup’s expansion in Europe.

Leapmotor International, the new company, plans to start sales in Europe in September and expand its sales outlets in the region to 200 by the end of the year, Leapmotor said yesterday. It will bring the C10 and T03 models to Europe first and then launch at least one new model a year over the next three years.

The Amsterdam-based JV also intends to enter the Indian, Asia-Pacific, Middle Eastern, African, and South American markets from the fourth quarter of this year. It will have the exclusive right to export, sell, and manufacture Leapmotor’s cars overseas.

“Leveraging Leapmotor’s cutting-edge technology and products, along with Stellantis’ support in areas such as overseas channels, services, and marketing, we hope that users around the world can experience the exceptional driving and riding experience brought by Leapmotor products,” said Leapmotor founder Zhu Jiangming.

“We believe that this cooperation can give Leapmotor a boost to become a respected world-class intelligent electric vehicle company,” he added.

Stellantis will own 51 percent of Leapmotor International, with Leapmotor owning the rest. The new company’s first chief executive officer will be Stellantis China former executive Xin Tianshu.

Stellantis announced last October that it would become a strategic shareholder of Hangzhou-based Leapmotor with a EUR1.5 billion (USD1.6 billion) investment for a 21 percent stake, enabling it to name two directors to the Chinese EV maker’s board.

Leapmotor’s net loss shrank 18 percent last year to CNY4.2 billion (USD581 million) on a 35 percent jump in revenue to CNY16.7 billion (USD2.3 billion), according to its annual trading report. It delivered 15,000 cars last month, up 3 percent from March and 72 percent from a year ago.

Editor: Futura Costaglione