Weekly Gigacasting News 34

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Leapmotor’s First Gigacasting Plant

Leapmotor, a rising Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer, has quietly joined the ranks of OEMs embracing Gigacasting technology.

A new Gigacasting plant is set to be built in Jinhua, China by Jinhua Jinyi Industrial Park Development.

The project, backed by a 300 million Yuan ($41.9 million) investment, will cover 44,000 square meters, with a construction area of 35,757 square meters.

Phase 1

A 10,000 ton die casting production line will produce 300,000 front underbody longitudinal beam sections annually, each weighing 34.3 kg post machining.

Phase 2

A 7,500 ton die casting line will manufacture 120,000 rear underbody gigacastings per year at full capacity, each weighing 50 kg after machining.

Unlike Tesla’s design, Leapmotor’s casting does not integrate the shock towers, crash cans, or large wheel arches. Instead, it adopts a simpler, more streamlined solution that is easier to design and integrate into the production process.

Although this solution may be lighter, quicker to develop and certainly makes the casting process easier, it offers fewer part reductions and lower cost savings compared to a fully integrated front underbody casting.

Below are examples of similar designs, including Wencan’s solution for AITO and Changan’s for its Nevo brand.

The project bidder for this Gigacasting plant is a subsidiary formed in April 2025 by the industrial park itself.

Once completed, Leapmotor will lease the production facilities and supporting infrastructure from the industrial park.

The plant is designed with scalability in mind, with potential expansions to supply major automakers such as Geely Group, Volkswagen, and Chery Automobile.

Xpeng G7 Unveiled

The Xpeng G7, the latest addition to the Xpeng lineup, features a front and rear underbody Gigacasting architecture with an integrated structural battery pack at its core.

Sharing the same platform and production facility as the G6, X9 and P7+, the G7 shares much of its body-in-white with the G6, including its underbody Gigacastings. This strategic overlap optimizes manufacturing efficiency by utilizing the G6’s production line, which was operating below its planned capacity of 120,000 units per year.

The G7's castings are produced using Xpeng’s in house capabilities, featuring two 7,000 ton die casting machines for the front underbody. Additionally, Guangdong Hongtu’s 12,000 ton die casting island, installed within the same facility under the “Factory within a Factory” model, supports rear castings. This integrated approach is widely adopted in Gigacasting production for enhanced efficiency in logistics.

The G7’s Gigacasting design adopts the efficiency driven approach pioneered by Tesla in 2020 for the rear and 2022 for the front, integrating as many components as possible to minimize part count.

This prioritizes production simplicity over minor weight inefficiencies caused by incorporating large flat surfaces, such as the rear floor and wheel arches, directly into the castings.

Opting for separate flat surfaces with spot-welded stamped sheets can reduce weight but increases part numbers and manufacturing complexity. While this method suits premium vehicles, Xpeng’s approach better aligns with affordability goals.

A key distinction from Tesla’s design is that Xpeng’s rear underbody excludes integrated crash cans to enhance repairability, according to the Founder and CEO of Xpeng himself.

Baowu Magnesium: Magnesium Die Casting Applications Surge

Magnesium die casting is gaining momentum across the industrial supply chain, with leading die casting companies such as Wencan, IKD, and Millison heavily investing and expanding their magnesium operations.

Major automakers, including Seres, Geely, SAIC, FAW, and GAC, are increasingly integrating magnesium alloy components into their vehicles.

Notably, Baowu Magnesium supplies all magnesium alloy parts for Seres' brands, with single vehicle magnesium usage now exceeding 20 kg. (5kg average in China before 2024)

Later this year, Baowu is set to start mass production of the rear underbody Gigacasting of the AITO M9.

Looking ahead, the adoption of large scale magnesium die cast and thixomolded components such as electric motor housings, door inner panels, wheels, CCBs, and even underbody Gigacastings is projected to increase single vehicle magnesium usage to 50 - 100 kg before 2030.

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OPTIMO Secures Major Deal For Magnesium Thixomolding Machines Supply in South Korea

On June 13th Jiangsu EMT Precision Manufacturing, a Chinese magnesium thixomolding machine manufacturer, entered into a strategic partnership with South Korea’s Optimo.

Under the agreement, Optimo will serve as the exclusive distributor of EMT’s thixomolding equipment in South Korea. Optimo also secured an initial order for an 800 ton machine.

This collaboration is a pivotal step in EMT’s global expansion.

EMT specializes in the research, development, and production of high precision magnesium thixomolding machines, equipment, and components.

LK Group Financial Results

LK Technology Holdings announced its full year financial results for the year ended on March 31st 2025.

Here’s a general overview:

Revenue for the die casting business was $496,860,000 USD, a year over year decline of 9% but accounting for 66.4% of the total revenue.

The previous year, the die casting business generated 73.5% of the total revenue.

The decline is both due to lower revenue from die casting and a strong increase in the plastic injection molding and CNC machines sales.

LK Machinery attributes the decline in its die casting business, particularly for ultra large die casting machines overseas, to major economic factors and automotive industry trends. Despite these challenges, the company remains highly optimistic about its future.

LK highlights the stark contrast in electric vehicle (EV) market growth: China’s EV market surged by over 30% year over year, while the US saw only a 2% increase.

This discrepancy stems from a significant slowdown in Western investments in new EV platforms, with manufacturers prioritizing adaptations of existing solutions for the short to medium term.

In summer 2024, LK Group delivered the world's largest 16,000 ton die casting machine to its customer, Guangdong Hongtu, and began mass production in October of the same year.

During the same period, LK opened a technical center where customers can test large die casting machines up to 9,000 tons, as well as a 13,000 ton machine equipped with a dual injection system.

Magnesium Thixomolding

LK Group holds a minority stake in Thixotropic Piston Injection GmbH, an Austrian company specializing in magnesium thixomolding modules.

These modules can be integrated into any conventional die casting machine, enabling it to function as a fully operational magnesium thixomolding machine with seamless switching between technologies.

I’m not a shareholder of LK Technology Holdings. I don’t trade the stock. I don’t represent LK Group or any of its subsidiaries. I’m just independently reporting. This is not financial advice.