Ebro, the reborn electric vehicle brand of the EV Motors group, has created a joint venture with the Chinese manufacturer Chery for the production of cars in the former Nissan plant in the Barcelona Free Trade Zone. The forecast is that the Asian giant will begin with the assembly of its Omoda brand vehicles and will be followed by the manufacture of the electric pick-up with which Ebro returns to the market after its disappearance in 1987.
Chinese automobile brands are seeking to grow with the launch of a major product offensive in Europe. And, specifically, Spain is one of the countries where these cars are having the best reception. So much so that the MG ZS, belonging to SAIC, became the best-selling model here in August and September 2023.
But beyond exporting their cars, large Chinese groups also want to manufacture in the Old Continent. BYD was the first to announce that it would do so in Hungary and now it has been confirmed that Chery Automobile will do so in Catalonia. The Chinese company that has chosen Barcelona for the production of its cars was founded in 1997 and is state-owned. Last year it sold 1.8 million vehicles and remained China’s top automobile exporter.
According to the company, based in Wuhu and chaired by Yin Tongyue, in the last two decades it has established four R&D centers (China, Germany, the United States and Brazil) and has a research team of more than 5,000 people. Among the brands it sells are Chery, Jaecoo, iCar and Omoda. The latter is the one chosen for its landing in the Spanish market, with the Omoda 5 SUV, which will also be assembled in the old Nissan plant.
Marketing is carried out through its own network of dealers; At the moment it has 45 establishments, which will increase to 80 in the first phase. In parallel, a spare parts storage, management and distribution network has been created (with a central warehouse in Azuqueca de Henares, Guadalajara); and distribution logistics offices have been inaugurated at the Noatum Automotive facilities, in Autoterminal Barcelona.
Chery Automobile will also market products from its Jaecco firm. The first to arrive in our country is Jaecoo 7, an impressively designed SUV that is around 4.5 meters in length.