According to a report in Germany’s Handelsblatt, the German automaker intends to collaborate on developing a platform for the new vehicle, hoping to make electric vehicles affordable for mainstream customers. It should be noted that negotiations between Volkswagen and Renault are still at a “very early stage” and may end without results. As far as current progress is concerned, the two parties aim to jointly produce 200,000 to 250,000 vehicles per year.

Volkswagen declined to comment on the report. A Renault spokesman said the collaboration was necessary to ensure competitiveness in the small electric vehicle market. “We are having a lot of discussions, but nothing has come to fruition yet,” the spokesman said.

European automakers are struggling to bring more affordable electric vehicles to the market as they face competition from Tesla and cheaper Chinese-made electric vehicles. According to automotive research firm JATO Dynamics, the average retail price of an electric vehicle in Europe in the first half of 2023 is more than 65,000 euros, while electric vehicles in China retail for just over 31,000 euros.

n March, Volkswagen announced details of a pure electric vehicle priced at 25,000 euros, which it plans to launch in 2025.At the time, VW also said it was working on an electric model priced at 20,000 euros, but didn’t provide much information.In November, Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume said the company hadn’t yet made any decisions about an electric vehicle priced at 20,000 euros, but that it believed it could achieve that goal beyond 2025.

Last month, Renault announced a new electric version of its Twingo model priced at less than 20,000 euros. Thierry Pieton, Renault’s chief financial officer, said the company’s goal is to mass-market electric vehicles.