The Volkswagen Group is seeking a partner for the joint development of its £17,000 ID1 electric car, according to a new report, which cites Renault as one potential collaborator.
Each firm has already detailed its own plans to produce an affordable, mass-market EV, with Volkswagen looking to launch the ID 1 in the coming years and Renault developing a production version of the reborn Twingo concept.
Renault (RENA.PA) confirmed it was in talks with several carmakers about a possible partnership, but declined to comment on names or timings. Volkswagen declined to comment. Last month, Renault announced the launch of a new Twingo EV, called Legend, which will sell for less than 20,000 euros ($21,500), with finance chief Thierry Pieton saying the aim was to democratise the EV market.
European automakers are accelerating their plans to bring affordable electric cars to market in response to new entrants from China. The average retail price of an EV in Europe in the first half of 2023 was over 65,000 euros, according to autos research firm JATO Dynamics, compared to just over 31,000 euros in China.