Peugeot, Jeep, Opel, Maserati... these Stellantis brands could soon each be entrusted to a different Chinese manufacturer.

For the past year, a strange feeling has been building up around Stellantis. Almost every new week, a Chinese manufacturer appears in the Group's news: Leapmotor, BYD, Dongfeng, JAC Motors... Announcements, rumors, partnerships and discussions follow one another at an unprecedented pace. So much so, that one question emerges: is Stellantis getting closer to China... or is it China that is courting Stellantis?

For behind this succession of deals, a pattern seems to be emerging. Under-utilized European factories, Chinese electrical technologies, struggling European brands, the need to cut costs and accelerate development: all these factors are gradually transforming Stellantis into a potentially very attractive partner for Chinese groups. And perhaps also a player deliberately seeking to make itself indispensable.

Leapmotor: the start of a new philosophy

The real turning point probably came with the partnership with Leapmotor. At the time, many people saw it primarily as a commercial agreement to sell Chinese electric cars via the Stellantis network in Europe. But in recent months, the project has taken on a whole new dimension.

The group headed by Antonio Filosa is no longer just talking about distribution. It's now talking about European factories, Chinese technical platforms and even future Opel models developed with Leapmotor technologies. The most striking example is the Villaverde plant in Spain. Stellantis is studying the possibility of transferring ownership of the site to the Spanish subsidiary of Leapmotor International. A symbolically enormous decision for a European manufacturer historically attached to its industrial sites. Meanwhile, Opel has confirmed that it is working on a future electric SUV based largely on Leapmotor's architecture and batteries. Officially, the model will be designed in Germany. But the technological base will be Chinese.

Even five years ago, such an announcement would probably have triggered an industrial and political earthquake. Today, Stellantis presents it as a logical evolution to accelerate the development of less expensive electric vehicles.

Dongfeng: the return of a long-standing partner

A few days later, Dongfeng Motor returned to the forefront with a much more structured official announcement.

The historic partnership between Stellantis and Dongfeng enters a new phase. The two groups will produce new Peugeot and Jeep models in China for the Chinese market... and for export worldwide. The agreement includes the production of two new Peugeot electric vehicles at the Wuhan plant from 2027, as well as two electric Jeeps for global markets. This time, we're not just talking about a local presence in China. We're talking about a Chinese manufacturer becoming an industrial link in the global strategy of iconic Western brands.

And behind this announcement lies another reality: the Cassino plant in Italy is regularly mentioned in discussions about possible cooperation with Dongfeng. The site is going through an extremely difficult period, with sharply declining volumes and an uncertain future.

BYD now looks to Stellantis factories

Then came the statement that has probably left the biggest impression on observers in recent days.

At a Financial Times conference in London, BYD made it clear that it was looking for available industrial capacity in Europe. And when Executive Vice President Stella Li mentioned discussions with several groups, the name Stellantis immediately came up in all the analyses.

This is no coincidence. Italy is now home to several of the Group's most vulnerable sites: Cassino, Mirafiori, and even certain assets linked to Maserati and Alfa Romeo. Against a backdrop of European industrial overcapacity, these plants become potential opportunities for Chinese automakers wishing to produce locally in order to avoid European customs barriers.

BYD remains deliberately vague about its real intentions, but the signals are strong enough to worry Italian trade unions and politicians. Above all, it reinforces the strange impression that Stellantis has become a particularly attractive industrial playground for Chinese groups.

Maserati and JAC: the rumour that sums it all up

But perhaps the most spectacular rumor is the one involving JAC Motors, Huawei and Maserati.

According to several Chinese media outlets, discussions have been taking place around of a future large electric luxury sedan using Huawei technologies, a JAC industrial base and the Maserati badge for international use. On paper, the project seems almost unreal: an electric Maserati developed in China to compete with Rolls-Royce and Mercedes-Maybach.

But this rumour perfectly illustrates the current period. Even a brand as symbolic as Maserati, the epitome of Italian automotive luxury, now seems to be integrated into this logic of technological rapprochement with China. The problem, of course, is as much cultural as industrial. Maserati sells an Italian history, a mechanical emotion, an identity linked to Modena and motorsport. Imagining a model based on a Chinese platform inevitably raises the question of the brand's very identity.

And yet, economically, the idea is not absurd. Maserati has virtually collapsed in China in recent years, from around 15,000 annual sales to just a few thousand. To return to this now ultra-technological market, a local partnership could appear to be a pragmatic solution.

Is Stellantis deliberately playing the Chinese card?

In the end, what is most striking is the simultaneous multiplication of files.

Leapmotor for electric platforms and European plants. Dongfeng to produce Peugeots and Jeeps for the rest of the world. BYD to look at unused industrial capacity. JAC and Huawei associated with a possible Chinese electric Maserati.

Taken separately, each case can be rationally explained. But taken together, they give the impression that Stellantis may also be trying to send out a message. That of a group open to partnerships, flexible, able to offer strong brands, European factories, distribution networks and historic industrial know-how. In short: an extremely attractive partner for Chinese giants looking to accelerate their global presence.

And in a fast-changing automotive industry, where European automakers are desperately seeking to cut costs in the electric sector, Stellantis seems to have chosen a very pragmatic path: building more bridges with China rather than trying to resist it head-on.