Renault Korea CEO Stephane Deblaise delivers a speech on the company’s product plans during a press conference at the Korea Press Foundation building in central Seoul on Aug. 31, 2023. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Aug. 31 (Korea Bizwire) — Renault Korea Motors, the South Korean unit of Renault S.A., said Thursday it will focus on gasoline hybrid models to revive sales, while making preparations for the production of all-electric models.
Renault Korea currently sells one gasoline hybrid model, the hybrid electric version of the XM3 compact SUV. Its lineup also includes three gasoline-powered ones: the XM3, QM6 SUV and SM6 midsize sedan.
The company will add a midsized gasoline hybrid SUV model to the lineup in the second half of next year under its Aurora 1 project, Renault Korea CEO Stephane Deblaise said in a press conference in central Seoul.
The Aurora 1 program is for the development of gasoline hybrid models.
As of today, the most urgent task for Renault Korea is to introduce gasoline hybrid cars, although the company will be able to produce all-electric cars, or battery electric vehicles (BEVs), if it finds the right solutions for BEVs, the CEO said.
The company is open to a car battery partnership with Korean companies, such as LG Energy Solution, SK On and Samsung SDI Co., he said without elaborating.
Renault Korea has been developing the new gasoline hybrid SUV in a joint project with Geely Automobile Holdings, China’s largest privately owned automotive group.
The new SUV will be built on the compact modular architecture (CMA) platform that was jointly developed by Geely and Volvo Cars at the Chinese carmaker’s research and development center in Sweden.
In January last year, Geely Holding Group and Renault Group announced they will develop an all-new vehicle lineup of fuel-efficient hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) and internal combustion engine models for the Korean market and abroad. HEVs are gasoline hybrid models.
Asked if the company has a plan to add gasoline hybrid versions of the SM6 and QM6 to its lineup, the CEO said there is no such plan at the moment.
On top of gasoline hybrid models, Renault Korea is also preparing for the upcoming era of BEVs, the executive said.
This file photo provided by Renault Korea shows the XM3 gasoline hybrid model.
The company said it is “still in talks” with the South Korean government to manufacture BEVs at its sole Busan plant, 320 kilometers southeast of Seoul.
Busan Mayor Park Heong-joon met with Renault Executive Vice President Guido Haak in Paris in June during his visit to France to help promote Busan’s bid to host the World Expo 2030.
In the meeting, Haak said the French carmaker plans to invest in the Busan plant in order to produce 200,000 units a year of all-electric vehicles, reportedly starting in 2026.
The 300,000-unit-a-year Busan plant is an important manufacturing base for Renault Group. The group wants active support from South Korea’s central government and the Busan city government.
The current production facilities in Busan are expected to be upgraded for the production of BEVs, along with existing models.
Renault has a 52.82 percent stake in Renault Korea, while China’s Geely Automobile Holdings and Samsung Card Co. hold 34.02 percent and 13.13 percent stakes, respectively.
From January to July, Renault Korea’s sales fell 25 percent to 69,682 vehicles from 92,829 units in the same period last year due to weak demand for its models.
(Yonhap)
