Ford Motor has reportedly reached an agreement with Geely involving the use of the “Body 3” assembly hall at Ford’s Almussafes plant in Valencia, according to Spanish automotive publication La Tribuna de Automoción.
Neither Ford nor Geely has officially confirmed the reported agreement.
Citing industry sources, the report said Geely is considering producing an electrified vehicle for the European market at the Spanish facility using its Global Intelligent Electric Architecture (GEA) platform. The platform supports multiple powertrain types, including hybrid, plug-in hybrid and battery-electric systems.
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The report also said Geely may build a related model for Ford based on the same platform.
According to La Tribuna de Automoción, the planned vehicle is linked to Geely’s internal “Project 135” and is believed to be derived from the Geely EX2, which could be marketed in Europe under the E2 nameplate.
The EX2 is reportedly the global version of Geely’s Yingyuan model sold in China. The vehicle measures about 4.14 metres in length and uses a 40-kWh lithium iron phosphate battery combined with an 85-kW rear-mounted electric motor.
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Geely states that charging from 30% to 80% can be completed in around 25 minutes, although the company has not disclosed charging times for the more widely used 10% to 80% range.
The “Body 3” facility reportedly contains the newest production infrastructure at Ford’s Valencia plant but is currently unused by the automaker.
Ford currently manufactures the Ford Kuga at the site using other production areas. The company previously also produced the Mondeo, Galaxy and S-Max in Valencia before ending production of those models.
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Ford had originally planned to allocate electric vehicle production to Valencia after selecting the plant over Saarlouis in Germany, though the automaker has since provided limited updates on those plans.
According to the report, the Body 3 assembly hall is configured to allow Geely to operate production largely independently from Ford’s existing manufacturing operations and supply chains.
The report added that Geely has already initiated contact with local suppliers in the Valencia region.
Although the GEA platform supports multiple powertrains, battery-electric vehicle production could offer strategic advantages in Europe because only battery-electric vehicles imported from China are currently subject to additional European Union tariffs, while hybrid vehicles remain exempt.
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Reuters reported earlier this year that Ford and Geely had entered discussions regarding “technology and production,” including the possible use of Ford’s European manufacturing capacity. Reports at the time differed on whether Geely would independently operate facilities or collaborate directly with Ford on production activities.
If Geely ultimately manufactures a Ford-branded electric vehicle in Valencia, it would further diversify Ford’s European electric vehicle strategy.
Ford currently sells the Ford Mustang Mach-E in Europe through imports from Mexico and produces the Ford Puma Gen-E in Romania using Ford-developed technology.
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The automaker also produces the Ford Explorer and Ford Capri at its Cologne plant in Germany using Volkswagen’s MEB electric vehicle platform.
Ford has additionally entered a partnership with Renault under which Renault is expected to build small electric vehicles for Ford using its RGEV Small platform, formerly known as AmpR Small.