As part of the Alpine Business Unit development, Groupe Renault and Group Lotus have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to study a number of areas of cooperation, including the joint development of an electric sportscar.
The Alpine and Lotus teams will conduct a comprehensive feasibility study for the joint engineering, design and development of the sportscar by leveraging the resources, expertise and facilities of the respective entities in both France and the UK.
Alpine and Lotus will also explore the development of a joint services offer combining their engineering expertise. A collaboration to leverage Alpine’s motorsport platform covering Formula One to Formula E and Endurance is also on the table.
Laurent Rossi, CEO Alpine, said: “The signing of this MoU with Lotus shows the lean and smart approach we are implementing as part of the new Alpine brand strategy. Both brands have an amazing legacy and we are most excited to start this work together, from engineering tailored solutions to developing a next-generation electric sports car.
“This collaboration along with our transformation mark the beginning of a new era in which we will be taking the Alpine name and line-up into the future. We are putting F1 at the heart of our business, leveraging our in-house expertise and best-in-class partners such as Lotus to inject our cars with leading-edge performance, technology and motorisation”.
Phil Popham, CEO, Lotus Cars, added: “This announcement is the first step in what is set to be a hugely rewarding collaboration between our iconic brands. We are proud to be working with Groupe Renault in this collaboration – sharing Lotus’ technical expertise and abilities, and leveraging our long track record of successful collaborations.
“Our companies have much in common – from a pioneering pedigree in light-weighting, to championship-winning sportscars which perform as impressively on the road as they do in the motorsports arena.
“It is a natural fit in many ways and the co-development of an electric sportscar is hugely exciting for both companies, our fans and customers around the world. The joint services element of our agreement will additionally make our engineering expertise available to those wishing to engage our innovations.”