Chinese Carmakers Accelerate European Expansion Despite Trade Tensions
Chinese automakers are expanding in Europe, leveraging competitive pricing and EV technology, despite EU tariff disputes. BYD, Geely, Chery, and others are building plants or forging partnerships, with several targeting production by 2027-2028.
Chinese automakers are expanding their presence in Europe, betting on competitive pricing and advanced technology to challenge traditional European and American brands amid the global shift to electric vehicles. This push has intensified trade friction between Brussels and Beijing, including a recent EU deal to curb imports of Chinese hybrid vehicles.
BYD, the world's largest EV seller, accounted for 2.5 per cent of total car registrations in the EU, Britain, and the European Free Trade Association from January to August, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association. Executive Vice President Stella Li said the company aims to build two more plants in Europe, with France a possible location, and expects to assemble all its European EVs locally by 2028. BYD's new Hungary plant is set to start assembly in the fourth quarter of this year.
Changan is in active talks with European manufacturers about producing cars in Europe, President Zhao Fei said on 12 October. The company hopes to produce its first European car in early 2027 and will announce a factory location and local partners by end-2026.
Chery, operating through brands including Jaecoo, Jetour, and Omoda, holds a 40 per cent stake in a joint venture with Spanish carmaker EBRO at a former Nissan plant in Barcelona. Production is planned for end-2026 or the first quarter of 2027, with a target of up to 30,000 cars this year, EBRO Chair Rafael Ruiz said in May.
FAW's luxury brand Hongqi is in talks with Stellantis to build vehicles at a Spanish plant, sources said in April, planning to launch over a dozen EV and hybrid models in Europe by 2028. Geely, through brands like Volvo, Polestar, and Zeekr, is the largest Chinese carmaker in Europe with 3.1 per cent of registrations, and will build two electric SUVs at a Ford plant in Spain under a joint venture, with production starting in 2028.
Leapmotor and Stellantis plan joint production in Spain and Italy, while SAIC Motor, the third-largest Chinese carmaker in Europe with 2.5 per cent of registrations, plans its first EU factory in Spain's Galicia region. Xpeng is in talks with Volkswagen and others about buying a European factory, the Financial Times reported in May.