- Ford and Geely have been discussing a potential partnership for “months,” Reuters reported on Wednesday.
- Talks are said to include potential vehicle technology sharing and Geely utilizing Ford’s manufacturing space.
- This could help Geely avoid huge tariff bills—at least in Europe—while building its global presence.
Ford’s leadership team is enamored with Chinese EVs; its CEO didn’t want to stop driving the Xiaomi SU7 imported into the U.S. That’s why it may come as no surprise that the Ford has reportedly been exploring a partnership with at least one Chinese EV juggernaut.
Ford has been discussing a partnership with Geely Automotive Holdings—the conglomerate that owns brands like Volvo, Zeekr, Polestar, Lynk & Co, Lotus and Geely—for “months,” insiders told Reuters. The companies are exploring a variety of areas for collaboration, eight people with knowledge of the talks told the outlet.
It wouldn’t be the first tie-up between an old-school Western manufacturer and a fast-moving Chinese automaker. And it may not be the last, as the world’s car companies scramble to catch up to China.
Photo by: Patrick George
Talks are said to center around two main topics. The first of which is a framework for shared vehicle technologies, including automated driving. That could help Ford build out its upcoming $30,000 EV pickup and affordable EV platform, or could mean Ford sharing its own legacy expertise with Geely. It’s not exactly clear at this point.
Sources say that the companies have also discussed Geely utilizing Ford’s factory space in Europe to help expand its global manufacturing footprint.
Ford’s under-used plant in Valencia, Spain, is the likely candidate for building Geelys, an insider told Reuters. Ford Valencia Body and Assembly currently assembles the compact Ford Kuga crossover and has an annual production capacity of around 450,000 vehicles. It also happens to be the automaker’s largest manufacturing plant outside of its home turf and was already being considered as a location for a “new, multi-energy passenger car” by Ford in 2024.
Ford’s leadership team and senior Geely executives reportedly met in Michigan last week to hold discussions (the scope of which isn’t clear at this time). Separately, followed by a separate delegation team sent to China by Ford this week.
If a partnership materializes, it could put Geely in a very solid position to avoid the tariffs imposed by the European Union on Chinese-imported vehicles (which are as high as 37.6%). Sources tell Reuters that the manufacturing space talks are more advanced than those on platform sharing, though both companies have declined to confirm any concrete plans.
“We have discussions with lots of companies all the time on a variety of topics,” a Ford spokesperson told Reuters. “Sometimes they materialize, sometimes they don’t.”
Ford did recently deny that it was in talks with Chinese newcomer, Xiaomi, regarding a joint venture to manufacture EVs in the U.S. So the company clearly is willing to deny when something is off the table.
Years ago, Chinese firms learned the ropes of making cars from joint-venture partners, which are required for foreign brands to sell cars in the country. Now the situation appears to have flipped, and established firms are leveraging the strengths of high-tech Chinese newcomers.
Volkswagen has a technology partnership with Xpeng that mirrors its Rivian joint venture in the U.S. Stellantis took a large stake in Leapmotor and has the rights to sell its vehicles outside of China. Ford is licensing LFP battery technology from China’s CATL to make cells domestically.
There’s no word on how the potential Ford/Geely deal might play out for the U.S. right now. Geely clearly wants to expand further into the U.S. market, which is guarded by steep tariffs. Plus, Chinese connected-car software is banned in the U.S., which means that the company needs to find a workaround if it wants to bring its Chinese-market cars here.
As Ford says, these discussions may not amount to anything. But the carmaker’s CATL deal does tell us something: If the Geely partnership does materialize and does extend to the U.S., expect political controversy.