Chery, production in Europe has gone the way of Spain?

Cherry, one of the manufacturers approached with a possible future commitment to produce in Italy, seems to be leaning towards Spain. The development provided by the Reuters agency is supported by information from the Ministry of Industry of Spain, confirming the advanced stage of negotiations with Chery and the participation of EV Motors.

The situation that emerges – and can be made official in the next few days – would like Chery committed to producing electric and hybrid vehicles at its Barcelona plantalready Nissan in the past and ceased in 2021. Following the breakup of Nissan, a three-product consortium (EV Motors, QEV Technologies and Silance) took over the production site, until leading to the exclusive acquisition of EV Motors in March.

The Spanish company would remain with Chery production, making most of the electric sedans and pick-ups at the Barcelona plant.

Chery among the manufacturers to bring Italy

According to early reports provided by Reuters, negotiations between Chery and the Spanish authorities have gained more momentum than those that occurred on the Italian side.

The two Italian-Spanish options for Chery Group’s production in Europe emerged in recent months, when the Chinese manufacturer added to the list of possible car manufacturers to be persuaded to produce in Italy. The goal of the government, through the Ministry of Industry and Made in Italy, still increased car production in Italy to 1.3 million units per year.

Speaking about the steps that Chery would take to expand production in Europe, Jochen Tueting, Chery’s director of operations in the Old Continent, explained last March: “We are exploring different possibilities across Europe, looking at the possibility of installing local production in the future. We are having discussions in different locations in Europe at this stage.”

Although there are no indications from the Spanish government about direct subsidies for production, in Spain the PERTE fund (Strategic Projects for Economic Recovery and Transformation; ed.) provides an endowment of 1.7 billion euros intended for loans and types of sponsorship for companies that will participate in the production of electric vehicles.