Geely and Ford restart Spain EV factory in Almussafes, delivery target 2028

Geely Auto is teaming up with Ford Motor to use Ford’s redundant capacity in Spain to build electric vehicles, with assembly planned at an idle factory in Almussafes near Valencia. The two companies will do it through a venture set up as part of Geely’s stepped-up push to expand globally, and deliveries are expected to begin in 2028, according to a statement by Geely on Thursday.

The headline number here is the timeline and the ownership split: Geely will hold a 34 per cent stake in the venture. That matters because it signals Geely is not just buying a few components or marketing an existing product, it is taking a seat inside the operating structure that will decide what gets built, how quickly it scales, and how risks and costs are shared as Europe tightens the rules around emissions and vehicle electrification.

Zoom out for a second, because this is really about manufacturing leverage. Ford has capacity sitting unused, which is expensive in two ways. First, unused assets are a direct drain on capital efficiency. Second, in autos and especially in EVs, time matters because customer preferences, regulatory deadlines, and competing product cycles do not wait for corporate reorgs. By partnering, Ford can monetize or redeploy that “redundant capacity,” while Geely gains industrial access in Europe without building a greenfield operation from scratch.

The location is not a random choice either. Almussafes, near Valencia, is where the venture plans to assemble “multi-energy cars.” That phrasing may sound broad, but operationally it lines up with the reality that automakers often need flexible production plans to adapt to demand for different powertrains. In practical terms, the factory is expected to move from idle to active output after the joint venture is set up, turning a dormant site into a ramp-up platform toward 2028.

Ownership structure is the board-level lever in this kind of deal. With Geely taking 34% and Ford presumably holding the remainder, the question executives should be asking is who effectively controls the factory ramp and investment decisions. A minority stake can still be meaningful if the operating agreement gives influence over product direction, capital spending, or commercialization in specific markets. Even when a partner does not hold majority control, the economics can still be attractive if the venture is designed to share both upside and pain. The source confirms the 34 per cent number and the basic venture plan, but the real governance stakes are in how responsibilities are allocated once deliveries begin.

Then there is the investor and risk lens. An EV timeline that points to 2028 is long enough that both firms will be navigating multiple regulatory and competitive milestones between now and the first deliveries. Europe’s policy environment has been pushing electrification for years, which tends to compress the margin of error for manufacturing decisions. Partnering with someone who already has an installed industrial footprint can reduce execution risk. It can also reduce the chance that a company overcommits to a factory plan that demand cannot support.

For Geely, this is also a brand and strategy signal. The statement frames the partnership as part of its stepped-up push to expand globally, which is not just a sales strategy. Expansion at scale typically requires supply chain credibility, manufacturing footprints, and the ability to localize production to meet regulatory and customer expectations. Using Ford’s idle plant is one way to accelerate that kind of footprint, while still keeping the venture structure disciplined through a defined stake.

For Ford, the strategic value is equally clear: turning idle capacity into a future revenue stream and preserving relevance in European EV competition. Ford’s move also reflects a broader industry pattern. When companies face shifting EV economics and uncertain demand curves, partnerships can be a faster path than building everything alone. In that sense, this Geely-Ford plan is not only about one factory in Spain. It is a template for how legacy automakers and ambitious global players may collaborate to manage capital pressure, execution timing, and regulatory constraints.

If you are a peer executive or board member at a carmaker, parts supplier, or EV infrastructure firm, the second-order implication is that manufacturing capacity in Europe is becoming more “fungible” through partnerships. The winners are likely to be the players who can match the right factory to the right product timeline without locking themselves into the wrong capex cycle. This venture does not eliminate EV risk, but it changes who carries it and when. And with deliveries expected to begin in 2028, the countdown is already started.