Zeekr and Lynk & Co tie the knot

Amalgamating will potentially produce a company that makes over one million EVs per annum. 

Zeekr alone is set to release three new models this year, and with Lynk and Co aboard, it hopes for a 40 per cent lift in sales to over 700,000 units in 2025. Lynk & Co has two new models for release this year.

Zeekr has just completed the integration of Lynk & Co into its fold. The latter is now a non-wholly owned subsidiary of Zeekr.

It already held a 51 percent stake in Lynk & Co as of November last year. The remaining shares were held by Geely.

Lynk & Co kicked off eight years ago as a joint venture between Geely Auto and Volvo Cars. The former owned 70 per cent, the Swede 30 percent.

In the new entity Zeekr, established in 2021, will remain unchanged. Within the next two years, Zeekr wants to become the world’s leading upmarket new energy vehicle (NEV) group. Aiming for annual sales of over one million vehicles, the CEO, Andy An, said the new entity will “change the landscape of the premium-luxury market in China”.

After the integration, Zeekr will continue to focus on the premium end of the market, concentrating on mid-size and large cars. Its mid-sized cars will be mainly battery EVs,while its larger offerings will be largely hybrids.

Lynk & Co, on the other hand, will focus on less expensive vehicles, making small battery EVs, while its medium and large cars will be hybrids, in the main.

Zeekr with its three new upcoming models is aiming for a full year target of 320,000 vehicles.

New models for Zeekr include the 007 GT in the second quarter, a full-size SUV in the third quarter, and a large luxury SUV in the fourth quarter. Both of the SUVs will utilise Zeekr’s super-electric hybrid technology.

Lynk & Co is aiming for a full-year sales target of 390,000 units. 

In the second quarter, the Lynk & Co 900 will hit the market as the world’s first production model using Nvidia’s Thor chip, An said.

The 900 is the company’s top-shelf plug-in hybrid SUV, aimed at a global market.

The integration of Zeekr and Lynk & Co is part of Geely Holding’s drive for greater efficiency. The two brands will also deepen synergies in sales where the two are strong. 

Outside of the Europe, the two brands will create a unified sales company and establish a unified market access mechanism.

The new group will use a single team to develop international markets for both brands.

This year Zeekr and Lynk & Co will have more than 200 outlets overseas. Lynk & Co will sell its new 08 PHEV and Zeekr its ultra-fast charging 7X SUV.

Both companies were represented in around 40 countries outside of China before the merger.