PARIS/SHANGHAI (Reuters) -Renault is in talks with more automakers including China’s Chery to explore partnerships to jointly produce and sell cars, a top executive said.
Fabrice Cambolive, Renault Group’s chief growth officer, told reporters on Friday about the talks while announcing the completion on Monday of a deal in Brazil with China’s Geely.
The move underscores how Renault has been increasingly partnering with other automakers, especially Chinese ones, in global markets to improve the efficiency of its factories worldwide and enhance product competitiveness.
Renault signed definitive agreements to sell Geely 26.4% of its Brazilian subsidiary, according to a press release issued on Monday. The two are joining hands in the largest Latin American market, where BYD has been building a factory and gaining ground with its affordable pure electric and plug-in hybrid models.
“This type of partnership is clearly a winning one because we are expanding access to different platforms, industrial tools, engineering and a distribution network,” Cambolive said in the press conference.
“It does not rule out other deals with other manufacturers in other markets,” he said, adding Chery is one of the automakers Renault is in contact with to explore similar partnerships although no projects have been finalised.
Bloomberg News in October reported Renault’s discussions with Chery to build cars in South America.
As part of the agreement in Brazil, Geely will have access to Renault’s factory in Sao Jose dos Pinhais, in the state of Parana, to assemble Geely-branded cars and distribute them through Renault’s sales network while Renault will use Geely’s vehicle architecture to expand its range to other segments for the Brazilian market.
Cambolive said the partnership aims to boost the factory’s utilization rate. It is currently operating at around 50% of its 400,000-unit annual capacity.
Renault has carmaking factories in about a dozen countries including France, Spain and India. It has also been producing and selling Grand Koleos developed on Geely’s platform in South Korea since 2024.
(Reporting by Gilles Guillaume in Paris, Zhang Yan and Brenda Goh in Shanghai; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)
