Almussafes (Spain) (AFP) – US carmaker Ford and China’s Geely will create a joint venture at Ford’s troubled Valencia plant in eastern Spain, where they plan to produce four new models for the European market, the companies said on Thursday. Ford will hold a 66 percent stake in the venture and Geely the remaining 34 percent, the two companies said in a statement about the project which was presented at the plant in Valencia.
The plant will continue producing Ford’s Kuga plug-in hybrid without interruption, with production from 2028 of a new Ford Bronco, two Geely electric SUVs, and a new multi-energy family crossover designed by Ford and jointly developed with Geely. “The goal is nothing other than to use this plant fully at its maximum capacity,” Ford Europe President Jim Baumbick told a news conference.
The partnership will allow the two automakers to reduce production costs at the Valencia site, which assembled fewer than 100,000 vehicles in 2025, its lowest output on record, according to the UGT Ford trade union. In the longer term, Ford and Geely said the plant could reach an annual production capacity of around 500,000 vehicles.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez welcomed the agreement during a visit to the factory, saying it demonstrated Spain’s ability to attract major investment and take part in the transformation of the automotive sector. “In a sector undergoing an absolute and profound transformation, foreign manufacturers know that betting on the added-value supply chain in our country, in Europe, is fundamental and a priority for the Spanish government,” he said.
The Ford-Geely deal follows a similar move by Stellantis, which announced in May that it would partially hand over its Madrid assembly plant to its Chinese partner Leapmotor, which is due to begin producing its B10 model there this year. Drawn by the shift to electric vehicles in the lucrative European market, Chinese carmakers are looking to manufacture inside the EU to avoid tariffs on imported vehicles. Spain has emerged as a key destination for Chinese carmakers looking to establish a manufacturing foothold in Europe, helped by its status as the region’s second-largest vehicle producer after Germany and by lower labour and energy costs.
© 2024 AFP
