Le 15 novembre 2023, lors d’une présentation aux investisseurs, Luca de Meo a présenté la stratégie de la filiale électrique de Renault. En plus de lancer une nouvelle gamme de véhicules, Ampere vise à réduire les coûts de production afin de rivaliser avec les marques chinoises et américaines.
Renault’s Ampere: The Central Element of the Renaulution Plan
The revolution has officially begun for the Renault group, as it enters the third phase of Luca de Meo’s Renaulution plan. Ampere, which was the focus of a dedicated presentation to investors on November 15, 2023, is at the heart of this revolution. Ampere is not just a simple business unit, but a new company that was created on November 1st. Already, 11,000 Renault employees (including 35% engineers) have joined Ampere, which pays tribute to the scientist who invented the unit of measurement for electric current.
The choice of the name Ampere is significant, as the entire business of the company is dedicated to electric vehicles. While the Megane E-Tech is the first car to reposition the group in this market, Ampere promises to introduce a range of seven models by 2031. This includes the future Scenic E-Tech, the Renault 5 planned for 2023, Renault 4 in 2025, and the newly unveiled Twingo. Two additional models are planned from 2027. Ampere aims to sell around 300,000 vehicles in 2025 and nearly one million in 2031, capturing a market share of approximately 10%.
Ampere’s Mission: Reducing Costs and Challenging the Status Quo
However, Ampere goes beyond just offering a range of electric vehicles. The goal is to streamline all structures in order to lower costs and eliminate the issue of high prices for electric cars, according to Luca de Meo. « We have no taboos, we will question every element. The industry has sometimes suffered from silos. But Ampere must break down these silos, » added Luca de Meo.
The Scenic E-Tech, presented last September, is a key example of this approach. The next version of the family model must have an electric price equivalent to its thermal version.
Reducing Costs by 40% in the C-Segment
Ampere has a clear roadmap for cost reduction. By 2027-2028, variable costs between the first and second generation of electric vehicles in the C-segment will be reduced by 40%. This includes battery costs, motor costs, platform costs, and the entire environment built around electric vehicles, such as the ElectriCity hub and partnerships with gigafactories like Verkor and Envision.
One important aspect is the use of the Software Vehicle Design platform, with Qualcomm as a partner. Qualcomm is also set to become a shareholder of Ampere, alongside Nissan and Mitsubishi. Development time will be reduced (two years for the new Twingo), as will production time. Luca de Meo proudly compares these timelines with those of Chinese competitors and even Tesla.
On the revenue side, the strategy remains the same, as the ambitions are high. The goal is to achieve a turnover of ten billion euros in 2025 with four vehicles, and then 25 billion euros in 2031 with seven vehicles. The target for the operating margin is set at 10% in 2030. The IPO is still planned for the first half of 2024, « subject to favorable market conditions. »
