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

On June 22, the strategic partnership between BAIC Foton and ZF achieved another milestone — the first AxTrax 2 electric drive axle rolled off the production line at their joint venture factory in Jiaxing, formally marking BAIC Foton's acquisition of a critical voice in the new energy core components field for commercial vehicles and a key leap from strategic planning to tangible 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, General Manager of BAIC Group, and Chairman of BAIC Foton; Lu Zhenghua, Party Committee Secretary 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 media, gathered together to witness this historic moment.

01 — Aligning with Industry Transformation, Strategic Layout Bears Fruit

The automotive industry is currently experiencing a once-in-a-century transformation, with the waves of 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 the new energy penetration rate projected to reach 50% by 2030, and L2+ level autonomous driving for commercial vehicles reaching 30%. Meanwhile, geopolitical maneuvering is reshaping the global energy supply chain landscape, and energy self-sufficiency has been elevated to a core strategic priority for nations, compelling the commercial vehicle industry to accelerate its transition from fuel-driven to electric-driven powertrains.

Based on a profound understanding of these industry trends, in April 2023, BAIC Foton and ZF signed a strategic agreement to introduce ZF's latest electric drive technology to China for the first time, with production established in Jiaxing. After three years of meticulous construction and preparation, the AxTrax 2 electric drive axle officially rolled off the line at the joint venture factory, signaling that this strategic blueprint has become reality.

As ZF's integrated electric drive axle platform designed for next-generation commercial vehicles, the AxTrax 2 can be applied to medium and heavy-duty vehicles. Its modular design replaces the engine, transmission, driveshaft, differential, and conventional axle to achieve commercial vehicle electrification. The product rolled off the line this time is equipped with a silicon carbide inverter on a maximum 930V platform, delivering 210 kW of continuous output power and 26,000 Nm of peak torque. It features a 3-speed transmission with electronic shift actuator. While the compact design maximizes battery placement space, it achieves full synchronization with the vehicle's 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 Partnership Reaches New Heights

Since BAIC Foton and ZF established their joint venture in Jiaxing in 2017, the cooperation between the two parties has continuously deepened. To date, the BAIC Foton-ZF transmission joint venture factory has accumulated total sales revenue of 20 billion yuan. With its advanced production systems and intelligent equipment, the Jiaxing base is becoming ZF's important manufacturing, R&D, and functional headquarters in the Asia-Pacific region. The official roll-off of the AxTrax 2 electric drive axle represents a critical step in extending the partnership from the traditional transmission field 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 development of the BAIC Foton-ZF transmission joint venture factory. He paid high tribute to the project team and all employees who worked day and night to overcome challenges. He stated that the roll-off of the new product is only the first step of a long journey, and put forward three expectations for the future development of the joint venture:

First, continue to lead with technology — fully leverage ZF's global technology advantages and BAIC Foton's vehicle scenario strengths to accelerate the efficient conversion of electric drive axles from technology reserves to commercial deliveries;

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

Third, promote localization and cost efficiency — relying on the resilience and scale advantages of the domestic supply chain, accelerate component localization so that electric drive axles of global quality can benefit customers with better cost-performance ratios, helping new energy commercial vehicles accelerate from "policy-driven" to "market-driven."

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

Standing at the critical juncture of the opening year of the "15th Five-Year Plan," the mass production roll-off of the AxTrax 2 electric drive axle is another important achievement in BAIC Foton's advancement of its three major strategies: "comprehensive internationalization, comprehensive new energy transition, and comprehensive intelligentization." Facing industry trends of deep integration between electrification and intelligence, and the restructuring of global patterns, BAIC Foton is using key technologies as leverage to build vertically integrated collaborative advantages in 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 vehicles, but also sets a benchmark for the localization of electric drive technology in China's commercial vehicle industry. Going forward, the BAIC Foton-ZF transmission joint venture factory will continue to drive cost revolution through technological innovation, unlock efficiency potential through lean management, and propel new energy commercial vehicles toward a new phase of market-driven growth.