BARCELONA, Spain, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese automaker Chery and Spanish company Ebro-EV Motors are set to launch production of their first joint vehicles at the former Nissan plant in Barcelona's Zona Franca starting November 2024.
The partnership, announced in April, marks Chery's debut in European car manufacturing. Ebro plans to start assembling its S700 and S800 SUV models on Nov. 18 and 28, respectively.
Ebro unveiled the S700 and S800 models in Madrid in May and the company describes the cars as "two mid-size SUVs with PHEV (Plug-in Hybrid) and combustion engines that will be manufactured under a platform and technology shared with Chery."
Originally, the two companies had planned to produce Chery's Omoda 5 in the refurbished plant, but production has been postponed until 2025 due to changes in European Union tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles.
Pedro Calef, CEO of Ebro, expressed excitement about restarting production in Barcelona and the significance of Ebro's revival.
"The activity that will begin next year, including the addition of a complete welding and painting line, will open up new opportunities for the local auxiliary industry, and for the production of other Chery vehicles," said Calef in a statement.
The Spanish automaker also specified that both models will be produced by a group of a hundred workers who had formerly been employed by Nissan, although that number is expected to grow to some 300 employees by the summer of 2025.
