Renault to cease F1 engine programme with Alpine set to become customer

Renault have officially confirmed its F1 engine programme will cease at the end of 2025. 

The French manufacturer's Enstone-based Alpine team will become a customer from 2026 and are expected to take on Mercedes power units for F1's new engine regulations. 

The facility at Viry-Chatillon will be transformed into 'Alpine Hypertech', focusing on the manufacturer's electric motor technology and road car projects. 

"Alpine's management confirms its project to transform the site into a centre of engineering and high-tech excellence by late 2024," an Alpine statement read. 

"Formula 1 activities at Viry, excluding the development of a new engine, will continue until the end of the 2025 season."

Renault has produced F1 engines for much of the past five decades since first entering the sport in 1977. 

Renault had been rumoured to stop building F1 engines for several months, with the manufacturer struggling to compete against rivals Mercedes, Ferrari and Honda since the V6 hybrid power units were introduced in 2014. 

"Creating this Hypertech Alpine centre is key to Alpine's development strategy and, more broadly, to the Group's innovation strategy," Alpine CEO Philippe Krief said. 

"It is a turning point in the history of the Viry-Châtillon site, which will ensure the continuity of a savoir-faire and the inclusion of its rare skills in the Group's ambitious future while strengthening Alpine's position as an 'innovation garage'. 

"Its racing DNA remains a cornerstone of the brand. It will continue to fuel an unprecedented industrial and automotive project, thanks particularly to Hypertech Alpine."