PSA Peugeot-Citroen, Dongfeng will co-develop EV platform due 2019
Groupe PSA, the parent company of Peugeot, Citroen and DS, has signed an agreement with Chinese automaker Dongfeng to co-develop an electric vehicle platform.
The initiative, announced overnight, is an extension of the deal the two car makers signed in April 2015. In that earlier agreement, Dongfeng and Peugeot committed to jointly developing a new common modular platform (CMP) for the next-generation of “B and C segment vehicles under the Peugeot, Citroen, DS and Dongfeng brands”.
At a ceremony in China, the French and Chinese auto makers confirmed that they will now also develop an electric version of that modular platform. The companies state that by 2019 they will be able to offer "all-electric, high-performance B and C segment vehicles" under the Peugeot, Citroen, DS and Dongfeng brands.
Above: Peugeot iON.
It's not clear at this stage whether the new electric vehicle platform will result in dedicated EV models targeted at the Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Bolt, or whether the companies will offer electric drivetrain options for regular models, similar to the Volkswagen e-Golf and Ford Focus Electric.
At present, Groupe PSA's electric offerings are limited to the Europe-only Peugeot iON and Citroen C-Zero, which are simply re-badged versions of the Mitsubishi i-MiEV.
This latest joint venture between the Dongfeng and PSA comes two years after Dongfeng helped to recapitalise PSA Peugeot-Citroen by purchasing 13 percent of the French automaker.
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