BAIC Foton and ZF's Strategic Partnership Bears Fruit Again: First AxTrax 2 e-Drive Axle Rolls Off the Production Line

On June 22, the strategic cooperation between BAIC Foton and ZF yielded another significant achievement — the first AxTrax 2 e-drive axle rolled off the production line at the joint venture factory in Jiaxing, marking a critical milestone in BAIC Foton's mastery of key technologies in the new energy commercial vehicle sector, transitioning from planning to implementation. Zhang Lan, Secretary of the Party Working Committee and Director of the Management Committee of Jiaxing Economic and Technological Development Zone; Chang Rui, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and General Manager of BAIC Group, and Chairman of BAIC Foton; Lu Zhenghua, Party Secretary and General Manager of BAIC Foton; Cui Shipeng, Vice President of BAIC Foton and Chairman of ZF Foton; Andreas Moser, Member of the ZF Group Board of Directors and Head of the Commercial Vehicle Solutions and Industrial Technology Divisions; along with hundreds of guests from government, shareholders, partners, and media gathered together to witness this milestone moment.

01 Embracing the Trend of Industrial Transformation, Strategic Layout Bears Fruit

The automotive industry is currently undergoing a transformation unseen in a century, with electrification and intelligence sweeping the globe. During the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, the domestic commercial vehicle market is expected to stabilize at around 3.2 million units, with new energy penetration projected to reach 50% by 2030, and L2+ intelligent driving in commercial vehicles reaching 30%. Meanwhile, geopolitical tensions are reshaping the global energy supply chain, making energy independence a strategic priority for nations worldwide, forcing the commercial vehicle industry to accelerate the transition from fuel-driven to electric-driven systems.

Based on this deep insight into industry trends, in April 2023, BAIC Foton and ZF signed a strategic agreement to introduce ZF's latest e-drive technology to China for the first time, with production in Jiaxing. After three years of meticulous construction and preparation, the AxTrax 2 e-drive axle officially rolled off the production line at the joint venture factory, turning this strategic blueprint into reality.

As ZF's next-generation integrated e-drive axle platform for commercial vehicles, the AxTrax 2 can be used in medium and heavy-duty vehicles, replacing engines, transmissions, drive shafts, differentials, and conventional axles with a modular design to achieve commercial vehicle electrification. The product features a 930V platform silicon carbide inverter, with a continuous output power of 210 kW and a peak torque of 26,000 N·m. It is equipped with a 3-speed transmission and electronic shift actuator. Its compact design maximizes battery layout space while achieving full synchronization with vehicle braking, ADAS, and autonomous driving systems, providing an efficient and intelligent system solution for the electrification transformation of commercial vehicles.

02 Jiaxing Base Continues to Empower, Joint Venture Cooperation Reaches New Heights

Since BAIC Foton and ZF established a joint venture company in Jiaxing in 2017, the cooperation between the two parties has continued to deepen. To date, the BAIC Foton-ZF transmission joint venture factory has achieved cumulative sales of 20 billion RMB. The Jiaxing base, with its advanced production systems and intelligent equipment, is becoming an important manufacturing, R&D, and functional headquarters base for ZF in the Asia-Pacific region. The official rollout of the AxTrax 2 e-drive axle marks a key step in the extension of cooperation from the traditional transmission field to the e-drive field.

In his speech, Lu Zhenghua expressed sincere gratitude to the Jiaxing Municipal Party Committee, Municipal Government, Economic Development Zone, and relevant departments for their long-term support and care for the development of the BAIC Foton-ZF transmission joint venture factory, and paid high tribute to the project team and all employees who worked tirelessly day and night to overcome difficulties. He stated that the new product rollout is only the first step of a long journey and put forward three expectations for the future development of the joint venture:

First, continue technological leadership, fully leveraging ZF's global technological advantages and BAIC Foton's vehicle scenario advantages to accelerate the efficient transformation of e-drive axles from technology reserves to commercial delivery.

Second, deepen customer value, closely focus on core scenarios such as long-haul logistics and regional transportation, and accelerate the value transformation of products from "rollout delivery" to "customer profitability."

Third, promote localization and cost reduction, relying on the resilience and scale advantages of the domestic industrial chain to accelerate the localization of components, bringing globally competitive e-drive axles to customers at better cost-performance ratios, and helping new energy commercial vehicles accelerate from "policy-driven" to "market-driven."

03 Anchoring the "15th Five-Year Plan," Supporting Green Transformation of Commercial Vehicles

At the critical juncture of the first year of the "15th Five-Year Plan," the mass production rollout of the AxTrax 2 e-drive axle is another important achievement of BAIC Foton in advancing its three major strategies: "Comprehensive Internationalization, Comprehensive New Energy, and Comprehensive Intelligence." Facing the industry trends of deep integration of electrification and intelligence and the restructuring of the global landscape, BAIC Foton is building vertically integrated synergies in key components such as batteries, e-drives, and electronic controls, leveraging key technologies.

The official production of the AxTrax 2 e-drive axle not only provides strong technical support for BAIC Foton's new energy commercial vehicles but also sets a benchmark for the localization of e-drive technology in China's commercial vehicle industry. In the future, the BAIC Foton-ZF transmission joint venture factory will continue to drive cost revolution through technological innovation, explore efficiency space through lean management, and accelerate the transition of new energy commercial vehicles into a new stage of market-driven growth.