Horse Powertrain, the powertrain joint venture between Geely and Renault, has entered into partnerships with Chinese automakers Leapmotor, Chery Automobile, and JAC Motors to help accelerate their international expansion, Reuters reported.
Established in May 2023, Horse Powertrain is jointly owned by Geely (45%), Renault (45%), and Saudi Aramco (10%). Its core engineering team is composed of experts from the engine divisions of Geely, Renault, and Volvo. The company operates five R&D centers globally and manages 17 powertrain factories that were previously part of Renault, including eight in China.
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Horse Powertrain’s product lineup includes internal combustion engines, hybrid systems (HEV, PHEV, and EREV), transmissions, and electric drive units, with an annual manufacturing capacity of about five million units. The company has developed hybrid engines used in vehicles such as Renault’s Grand Koleos SUV for the South Korean market and Geely’s Zeekr 9X SUV.
“We have a lot of worldwide collaborations with different automakers,” said Wang Ruiping, CEO of Horse subsidiary Aurobay, confirming the partnerships with Leapmotor, Chery, and JAC at an event in Ningbo.
The partnership aligns with Leapmotor’s long-term strategy, as CEO Zhu Jiangming told Reuters the company plans to expand its lineup to 15 models by 2027, including plug-in hybrids. The collaboration could enable Leapmotor to adopt Horse’s hybrid technology platform directly.
Chery and JAC, which already export combustion and hybrid models, are also expected to benefit from Horse Powertrain’s technology and manufacturing network to improve localization and meet certification requirements for higher-end models in overseas markets.
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Horse Powertrain aims to become the world’s largest producer of engines and hybrid systems by 2035, with Chinese automakers expected to play a key role as strategic partners.
According to S&P Global Mobility, China’s annual plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) sales are projected to grow approximately 2.2 times in 2025 compared with 2024, reaching about 11.41 million units by 2032.