BAIC Foton and ZF Strategic Partnership Bears New Fruit — First AxTrax 2 Electric Drive Axle Rolls Off the Production Line

On June 22, the strategic partnership between BAIC Foton and ZF Friedrichshafen bore new fruit — the first AxTrax 2 electric drive axle from their joint-venture plant was officially rolled off the production line in Jiaxing, marking a critical breakthrough for BAIC Foton in the core components sector of new-energy commercial vehicles and a key leap from strategic planning to real-world execution. Zhang Lan, Secretary of the Party Working Committee and Director of the 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, Secretary of the Party Committee and General Manager of BAIC Foton; Cui Shipeng, Deputy General Manager of BAIC Foton and Chairman of ZF Foton; Andreas Moser, Member of the ZF Group Board of Directors and Head of Commercial Vehicle Solutions and Industrial Technology Divisions; along with hundreds of guests from government, shareholders, partners, and the media, gathered together to witness this milestone moment.

01 — Aligning with Industry Transformation: Strategic Vision Realized

Today, the automotive industry is undergoing changes unseen in a century, with electrification and intelligentization sweeping the globe. During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, China's 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+ level autonomous driving adoption in commercial vehicles reaching 30%. Meanwhile, geopolitical dynamics are reshaping global energy supply chains, elevating energy self-sufficiency to a strategic priority for nations and accelerating the industry's shift from fuel-driven to electric-driven powertrains.

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

As ZF's integrated electric drive axle platform designed for next-generation commercial vehicles, the AxTrax 2 is applicable to medium- and heavy-duty trucks. Its modular design replaces the engine, transmission, driveshaft, differential, and conventional axle to achieve full commercial vehicle electrification. The product that rolled off the line features a silicon carbide inverter on a maximum 930V platform, delivering 210 kW of continuous output power and 26,000 N·m of peak torque. Equipped with a 3-speed transmission and electronic gear-shifting actuator, the compact design maximizes battery packaging space while achieving full synchronization with vehicle braking, ADAS, and autonomous driving systems — providing an efficient, intelligent system-level solution for the electrification of commercial vehicles.

02 — Jiaxing Base Continues to Empower: Joint Venture Reaches New Heights

Since BAIC Foton and ZF established their joint venture in Jiaxing in 2017, the partnership has been continuously deepening. To date, the BAIC Foton–ZF transmission joint-venture plant has achieved cumulative sales of 20 billion RMB. Leveraging advanced production systems and intelligent equipment, the Jiaxing base is becoming a key manufacturing, R&D, and functional headquarters for ZF in the Asia-Pacific region. The official roll-off of the AxTrax 2 electric drive axle marks a critical step in expanding the partnership from traditional transmissions into the electric drive domain.

In his address, Lu Zhenghua expressed heartfelt gratitude to the Jiaxing Municipal Party Committee, Municipal Government, the Economic Development Zone, and relevant departments for their long-standing care and support for the BAIC Foton–ZF transmission joint-venture plant. He paid tribute to the project team and all employees who worked tirelessly day and night to overcome challenges. He noted that the roll-off of the new product is just the first step of a long journey, and put forward three expectations for the joint venture's future:

First, sustained technological leadership — fully leveraging ZF's global technology strengths and BAIC Foton's vehicle platform and application scenario advantages to accelerate the efficient conversion of electric drive axle technology from R&D reserves to commercial delivery;

Second, deepening customer value — focusing on core scenarios such as trunk-line logistics and regional transportation to accelerate the value conversion from "roll-off delivery" to "customer profitability";

Third, advancing localization and cost-efficiency — relying on the resilience and scale advantages of China's domestic supply chain to accelerate component localization, making world-quality electric drive axles accessible at better value for customers, and helping new-energy commercial vehicles accelerate the transition from "policy-driven" to "market-driven" growth.

03 — Anchored on the 15th Five-Year Plan: Driving Green Transformation of Commercial Vehicles

Standing at the critical starting point of the 15th Five-Year Plan, the mass production roll-off of the AxTrax 2 electric drive axle represents another significant achievement in BAIC Foton's push toward its three major strategies: "Full Internationalization, Full New-Energy Transformation, and Full Intelligentization." Facing industry trends of deep convergence between electrification and intelligentization amid a reshaping global landscape, BAIC Foton is leveraging key technologies to build vertically integrated synergies across core components including batteries, electric drives, and electronic controls.

The official production launch of the AxTrax 2 electric drive axle not only provides strong technical support for BAIC Foton's new-energy commercial vehicle lineup but also sets a benchmark for the localization of electric drive technology in China's commercial vehicle industry. Looking ahead, the BAIC Foton–ZF transmission joint-venture plant will continue to drive a cost revolution through technological innovation and unlock efficiency through lean management, pushing new-energy commercial vehicles toward a new era of market-driven growth.