In a joint venture based in Barcelona, northeastern Spain, China’s Chery Automobile and Spain’s Ebro-EV Motors agreed to create new electric vehicles on Friday.
As a result of the partnership, Chery will produce cars in Europe for the first time, using Ebro’s facilities, which are housed in a former Nissan facility that will close in 2021. The joint venture in Barcelona’s Zona Franca port area is expected to generate 1,250 jobs and produce 50,000 cars in 2027, doubling that number in 2029.
At a formal ceremony to commemorate the alliance, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez stated, “This agreement for the joint production of vehicles by two brands is much more than a major business project… it is also a symbol of the re industrialisation process that Catalonia and the whole of Spain are seeing.”
“Today, we all experience a sense of happiness as it is uncommon to see the revival of a legendary brand,” Sanchez remarked. “Ebro’s trucks, vans, and tractors, which they used for many years, are ingrained in the collective memory of the entire Spanish society.”
He emphasized that the deal “will translate into the generation and maintenance of employment as well as the production of wealth.”
“An industry that is central for the proper functioning of the Spanish economy,” according to Sanchez, is the automotive sector. The goal of the agreement, he said, is to “turn Spain into a major European electro mobility hub” as part of “a genuine nationwide commitment to smart and sustainable mobility.”
According to Sanchez, Spain is the eighth-largest exporter in the world and the second-largest producer of automobiles in Europe, having exported 87% of its total production last year. It includes 10 clusters, 15 technology centers, and 17 automobile plants spread throughout 10 districts.
“There is a robust network of over 1,000 companies in the automotive industry, which are part of 720 major business associations and directly employ over 230,000 people in the automotive manufacturing sector,” he continued.
The Chinese ambassador to Spain, Yao Jing, the Spanish minister of industry and tourism, Jordi Hereu, the president of the Catalan government, Shan Xiangqian, the deputy governor of Anhui, a province in eastern China where Chery is based, Pedro Calef, the CEO of Ebro, and Zhang Guibing, the executive vice president of Chery are all in attendance on Friday.
Shan stated that both the Chinese and Spanish peoples will gain from Chery’s project’s implementation in Spain. “We hope that the agreement establishes a new beginning and strengthens collaboration with Spain in fields like technological innovation and advanced manufacturing.”
According to Ebro’s Calef, production of Chery’s Omoda 5, the brand’s first electric model, as well as a combustion vehicle, will begin in the fourth quarter of this year. At the end of the year, two SUV models from Ebro built using Chery-shared technology are also anticipated.
Zhang from Chery said that the two businesses are combining their strengths to “create something akin to a newborn.” “We are collaborating to create new models that will be sold through this joint venture as well.”
