News in brief: Leasys fleet sales go electric; Stellantis invests in Leapmotor; Vauxhall partners with carwow

Leasys sales go electric

FOLLOWING the merger of Leasys and Free2Move in April, the combined business has registered more than 169,000 new contracts across Europe from January to end September. Of these, the broker funder says 16% were for electric vehicles, comprising 9% battery electric vehicles (BEV) and 7% plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV).

To date, the composition of the Leasys total fleet is 30% electric and hybrid vehicles, in line it says with its target for 2026, where one out of every two contracts will be for a green vehicle.

Stellantis invests in Chinese OEM Leapmotor

STELLANTIS is investing €1.5 billion in Chinese mid to high-end EV car maker Leapmotor. it will hold 20% of the company as it continues to attempt to up its presence in the world’s biggest auto market.

The investment will also see the formation of Leapmotor International, a 51/49 Stellantis-led joint venture which will sell and manufacture Leapmotor products in Europe. Stellantis says it will help accelerate its electrification plans.

Pictured above is the Leapmotor C11 SUV at the end of the production line.

Vauxhall partners with carwow

VAUXHALL is partnering with online car marketplace, carwow, to accelerate its Electric Streets of Britain programme launched in summer 2023.

By accessing carwow’s extensive database, Vauxhall says it can work with councils to pinpoint where interest in electric vehicles (EVs) is strongest across the country and where requirement lies for on-street charge point installation to be accelerated.

James Taylor, managing director, Vauxhall, said: “We know that over 70% of UK councils have no published strategy for residential on-street charging and want to help local authorities install charging infrastructure where it’s needed, so car buyers are not put off by a lack of available charging as the number of EVs on the road grows.”