How Renault's Ampere aims to be Europe's leader in EVs, software-defined cars

PARIS -- Renault Group said its Ampere EV unit will "democratize” electric cars in Europe, offering battery-electric models for the same price as combustion engine models.

Ampere will be the first European EV and software "pure player,” Renault said, with a new generation of electronic architecture including Google Android-based software, and the launch of the first "software-defined vehicle” in 2026.

Renault said Ampere vehicles will reach price parity with ICE (internal combustion engine) models faster than the competition, thanks to an overall 40 percent cost reduction by 2027-28 when the second generation of its compact (C segment) EVs are launched.

“Ampere will be able to gradually reduce vehicle prices while improving margins,” Renault Group CFO Thierry Pieton said Wednesday. 

Automakers are struggling with the cost of building EVs, with consumers balking at high list prices as the economy cools and inflation increases the cost of living.

At the same time, European brands -- and the European Union -- are bracing for a wave of low-cost Chinese-built models. The MG4 compact EV from SAIC, which starts at less than €30,000, has quickly become a best-seller in one of Europe’s most competitive segments.

The first shot in a potential low-cost EV price war was fired by Stellantis last month, when it unveiled the Citroen New e-C3, a sub-€25,000 small car that is based on the Smart Car platform for India and other developing markets. It will be built for in Slovakia, making it the first European-built EV to reach that price point. 

Volkswagen is also planning a small EV at that price, and Tesla is reportedly considering building an inexpensive EV at its factory in Germany.

The first full lineup of Ampere cars will comprise the:

• Megane E-Tech, launched last year
• Scenic E-Tech, which goes on sale early next year
• Upcoming Renault 5 that will be revealed early next year
• Renault 4 to be launched in 2025
• Sub-€20,000 successor to the current Twingo minicar.

There will also be two additional vehicles, Renault said.

Ampere will also build cars for Renault's Alpine sports-car brand as well as the Nissan Micra small EV and Mitsubishi models.

Renault has renamed its "EV-native” platforms for Ampere, with CMF-BEV for small cars now called AmpR Small, and CMF-EV for compact models now called AmpR Medium.

Renault said it would sell the retro-styled Renault 5 for €25,000 or less. The Scenic E-Tech will start at €40,000, with the Megane E-Tech at €38,000.

Ampere’s financial targets include revenue of at least €10 billion by 2025, when it will have four vehicles; and more than €25 billion in 2031 when the full lineup has rolled out.  

Pieton said Ampere will break even in the second half of 2025, with a shortfall totaling €1.5 billion in 2024 and the first half of 2025. It is aiming for 1 million sales in 2031. 

Revenue will mostly come from vehicle sales, but other streams include sales to partners within the group and the Nissan alliance; aftersales revenue from software-defined vehicles; and emissions credit sales to other Renault Group brands. New services such as app sales and self-driving upgrades are expected to contribute €500 per vehicle.

Ampere started operating separately from its parent on Nov. 1. It has three factories in northern France and will purchase batteries for its cars from Chinese-Japanese maker AESC Envision and French startup Verkor. Both will have gigafactories near Ampere's plants.

Renault said it will take costs out of the EV manufacturing process in a number of ways:

• Powertrain: 50 percent reduction on battery cost per vehicle with no loss in range; 25 percent reduction on the powertrain, including a new generation of electric motor developed with Valeo and new power electronics.
• Vehicle: 25 percent reduction in platform cost per vehicle and 15 percent reduction in bodywork cost. The network of suppliers will be streamlined by 40 percent.
• Operations: 50 percent cut in manufacturing and logistics costs. Renault has concentrated its EV production sites in northern France in its ElectriCity cluster, including a battery cell gigafactory with Envision AESC. It also seeks to reduce the time needed to build an EV to less than 10 hours.

Ampere’s EVs will come with a host of technological advances, Renault said, centering on the launch of the group’s first software-defined vehicle. The car will be fully cloud-connected, allowing for over-the-air updates, lower chip costs and higher residual value thanks to software upgradeability.

The automaker boosted its software engineering capability in 2017 when it acquired Intel Europe. It has partnerships with Qualcomm (a potential investor in Ampere) and Google.

Renault said this "horizontal” approach, rather than in-house development only, cuts software development time by 50 percent," on par with Chinese players and up to half of Western automakers.”