The car manufacturer Chery will strengthen its commercial and industrial presence to become "the most important Chinese company in Spain," as revealed by Charlie Zhang, executive vice president of Chery Auto, in a meeting with EL MUNDO at the company's headquarters in Wuhu.
The strategy involves two paths. On one hand, they are considering introducing up to four new brands between the end of this year and next year, to add to the two (Omoda and Jaecoo) that have been marketed since 2024. On the other hand, they will increase the production rate of the Barcelona plant where they are partnered with the Spanish company EV Motors. Currently, this factory already completes the Ebro S700 and S800 models, which are almost finished in Wuhu. In November, once they have located enough components in Europe or Spain to make the batteries, they will start assembling the electric Omoda 5 and Jaecoo 5 models.
iCar, the frontrunner
Chery, the largest Chinese vehicle exporter for the past 20 years, has a wide range of brands in its local market. The one with the highest likelihood of coming is iCar. It produces small SUVs inspired by Jeep or Land Rover models, 100% electric or with extended range, which would be the first to arrive. It is also likely that Lepas will land, offering conventional SUVs, plug-in hybrids, or pure electric models.
The other two brands have a premium focus and are not expected to arrive before the end of 2026. One is Exlantix, with two flagship models - a sedan and an SUV with the same technologies as iCar - but given the target customer profile, sales will start in Norway and Denmark. "Then we will consider introducing them in Spain." The other is Luxeed, a result of Chery's collaboration with the technology company Huawei and therefore a competitor to its compatriots Xiaomi or Tesla.
It has not yet been decided whether the launch plan will be like with Omoda and Jaecoo, which Chery controls directly. Or if they will use a method like the one chosen with the Spanish company EV Motors, with which they created a double joint venture for the manufacturing of Ebro models in Barcelona and their sale. In both cases, the majority of these partnerships are in the hands of the Spanish side.
"There are different brands and possibilities. We will see how to introduce them, not only on our own, but probably through partnerships," Zhang stated. However, they will always have independent directions to compete with each other.
In any case, the executive emphasized that their top priority is to strengthen the results of Omoda, Jaecoo, and Ebro in Spain. They are currently selling around 2,000 cars per month of the first two and another 1,000 of Ebro. "But it's not enough," said the Chery vice president, who aims to reach "4,000 to 5,000 vehicles per month by combining Jaceoo and Omoda; and 2,000 to 3,000 in Ebro. To achieve this, they will bring up to six new cars: Jaecoo 5 and 8, Omoda 7 and 9, and Ebro S400 and S900. These models may be (not in all cases) combustion, self-charging hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and 100% electric.
Goal: 200,000 cars in Barcelona
The other key part of their strategy is industrial. "We are currently in the first phase in Barcelona, which involves using a capacity of 100,000 vehicles per year, but we will immediately start working on the second phase to reach 200,000 vehicles," the executive pointed out. "We already have 800 employees hired, which could be 1,000 before the end of the year, making us, if we are not already, the first Chinese company in Spain."
According to Zhang, "that is still not enough," which is why they will have a second factory in another European country. "Our president always says that if we want to be from a place, we have to be there. Exporting from China is not enough." He did not provide further details, but Italy or Turkey are mentioned as possible locations for that factory.
Spain, a great friend of China
Chery's vice president also did not rule out the possibility that these facilities could be acquired from a struggling manufacturer, although he leans more towards "strategic collaborations." He made it clear that these investments aim to consolidate their presence in the Old Continent, regardless of the tariffs imposed by the EU on electric cars. Regarding these, he mentioned that there are "very positive signals" from the negotiations between China and Brussels and expressed confidence that the tariffs will be replaced with a "minimum price" for those vehicles.
Zhang recalled that they were the first Chinese manufacturer to produce in Europe and emphasized that they have "very important partners" in the region. In fact, he cited Spain as an example, despite Pedro Sánchez's initiatives raising concerns in the EU. "Your country is a very good friend of China. Two weeks ago, in Beijing, I met your president and we had a very good conversation. These kinds of bilateral relationships create a favorable atmosphere for a company like ours and our business in Spain. That is why we are investing heavily. We have a factory and we are going to establish an R&D center."