Lotus has said that it is currently developing a crossover SUV to rival the likes of the Porsche Macan. Lotus CEO, Jean-Marc Gales has called the under-development model 'the world’s first lightweight SUV'.

The crossover SUV will become the first model to be jointly developed by Lotus, its Malaysian owners Proton, and Chinese engineering firm Goldstar Heavy Industrial. The new car is expected to go into production at Lotus’ new production plant in China sometime in 2019. The company has said that its first step will be to target the Chinese market before moving to other markets internationally.

The crossover will follow Lotus’ tradition and have a name beginning with the letter ‘E’. This is part of Gales’ new development and expansion plan revealed last year which mentioned the development of a SUV, alongside all-new versions of its sports car models.

On the design front, the car is expected to get styling cues from the company’s sports cars with extensive use of steel, aluminium and composite materials to keep the weight down. The car is might be around the same size as the Macan, but will sit lower to keep the centre of gravity low.

Under the hood, the car is expected to get the Toyota-sourced supercharged 1.8-litre four-cylinder and 3.5-litre V6 petrol engines with diesel coming in only at a later stage. It will receive a four-wheel drive system. A hybrid may also be on the cards.

When launched, this new crossover SUV won't be the first SUV to come from the company. Lotus had showcased the APX concept (Aluminium Performance Crossover) at Geneva in 2006.