Ford to build new SUV on Geely’s electric platform in Spain

Ford ↗ 3.00% will build a new SUV using Geely's electrified GEA modular platform at its Almussafes plant near Valencia, Spain, Automotive News reported Thursday. The move represents the most concrete product outcome yet from the joint venture the two automakers announced in July, and underscores how deeply Western carmakers are now borrowing from Chinese engineering systems to remain competitive.autonews+1

The Deal

Ford and Geely formally agreed in late July to form a joint venture at the Valencia facility, with Ford holding 66 percent and Geely holding 34 percent after paying €221 million for its stake. Operations are set to begin in the first half of 2027 pending regulatory approvals, with the first vehicles rolling off the line in 2028.prnewswire+2

The venture will produce four new models: a compact Bronco-family SUV, a multi-energy crossover designed by Ford and jointly developed with Geely on the GEA platform, and two Geely-branded electric SUVs. The GEA — or Global Intelligent Electric Architecture — is Geely's modular platform supporting hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and battery-electric powertrains.bloomberg+3

The Almussafes plant, which has operated since 1976 with capacity for roughly 500,000 vehicles annually, currently builds only the Kuga and was running at under a quarter of capacity, according to Bloomberg. Pooling Ford and Geely volume in a single factory is intended to lower per-unit costs for both brands.bloomberg

A Contradiction in Plain Sight

The partnership sits awkwardly alongside Ford CEO Jim Farley's public warnings about Chinese automakers. Farley told Fox News it would be "devastating" if Chinese EVs were allowed into the United States, and in a July town hall told employees that Chinese companies could enter the American market within five to ten years despite existing tariffs. Yet on Ford's first-quarter earnings call in April, he acknowledged the company leverages "global partnerships and IP sharing, Chinese companies included".autonocion+1

The tension extends further. In February, Bloomberg reported that Farley discussed with senior Trump administration officials a framework under which Chinese automakers could build cars in America through joint ventures with U.S. firms holding controlling stakes.bloomberg

Geely's Survival Strategy

For Geely, the deal is not generosity — it is necessity. The company reported on August 17 that exports surged 158 percent year over year to 474,228 vehicles in the first half of 2026, while domestic Chinese sales fell sharply. Geely raised its 2026 export target from 640,000 to 920,000 vehicles.autonews+1

The Valencia plant gives Geely its first European production base inside the EU's tariff wall against Chinese-built EVs — the same strategy Chery is exploring at Nissan's Sunderland plant and Dongfeng at a Stellantis ↗ 2.85% factory in France. Through its External Collaboration Research Institute, which now runs more than 100 projects with clients including Renault and Waymo, Geely is selling the engineering speed that made its domestic rivals so formidable to the very companies that once set the global standard.autonocion+1