Chery Plans to Produce Up to 300,000 Cars a Year in Britain
Chery has agreed with Nissan on the possible assembly of up to 300,000 cars a year in Sunderland and wants to become a British brand with a design center in the UK.
Chery is considering producing up to 300,000 cars a year at the Nissan plant in Sunderland. This is reported by Auto Express. The matter concerns a memorandum with Nissan on the possible use of the British facility's spare capacity.
The company has already opened an engineering center at a test track in Bedfordshire. In parallel, it is in talks with British automotive design specialists and is considering relocating the headquarters of its design center to the UK. The goal is to design, develop and manufacture cars on British soil and sell them around the world.
What did the head of the group say?
Chery head Yin Tongyue stated the ambition plainly. He said: "We need to become a British brand. I really want our cars to be designed, developed and manufactured in the UK in the future, and sold all over the world."
This is not a declaration for show. Concrete steps stand behind it: a functioning engineering center, design talks, a memorandum with Nissan. Yin Tongyue also stressed that the group intends not merely to increase sales, but to contribute to the economies of the countries in which it operates.
How are relations with Jaguar Land Rover being built?
A separate direction is expanding the partnership with JLR. The Chery Jaguar Land Rover joint venture has been operating since 2012. It produces cars for the Chinese market.
Later, the parties launched the Freelander brand (a model line formerly owned by Land Rover). Under this arrangement, Chery received a license to use the British partner's intellectual property.
Now Yin Tongyue proposes discussing how the Chinese group can help JLR restore its former production volumes. He did not rule out investments in British car brands. The executive also expressed a desire to support the revival of one of the local sports car marques.
Why does Chery need British assembly?
The mechanism here is simple and pragmatic at the same time. UK authorities plan to introduce tariffs on Chinese car imports. Local assembly within the country will reduce Chery's dependence on supplies from China and protect the business from new trade barriers. At the same time, it will support the British automotive industry and jobs.
For JLR, possible investments are a chance to win back lost production volumes. For Nissan, it is a way to utilize spare capacity in Sunderland. Each party has its own interest.
The set of facts adds up to a coherent strategy: the engineering center is already operating, the design direction is under discussion, and the production site has been tentatively selected. London's trade policy could hinder Chery's plans, but localizing assembly is precisely the answer to that risk.
It was previously reported that Chery is also seeking a path to the US market through Canada.
Author: Sergey Melnik
Original: autoexpress.co.uk
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