(Reuters) -China’s Geely Automobile Holdings and French car maker Renault SA signed a joint venture (JV) to launch a company that will manufacture and supply hybrid powertrain engines, the companies said on Tuesday.
Reuters reported in March that Renault and Geely want their JV to become a leading combustion engine and hybrid engine supplier for the car industry by the end of 2023, with a workforce of 19,000 and 15 billion euros ($16.3 billion) in annual revenue.
Geely, via its subsidiary Aurobay Holding, will hold 33% of the joint venture, 50% will be owned by Renault and the remaining stake will go to GHPT Ltd, a subsidiary of Geely Holding, the company said in a statement.
Both companies have for months now looked to bring in Saudi Aramco as an investor and a partner to develop and supply gasoline engines and hybrid technologies.
Aramco is evaluating a strategic investment in this new powertrain technology company, Renault said.
The completion of the transaction is expected to take place in the second half of 2023.
(Reporting by Harish Sridharan in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee and Eileen Soreng)
