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China’s EV giants are breathing new life into Europe’s ailing car industry

From Sunderland to Spain, Chinese manufacturers are revitalising idle factories and investing where traditional European carmakers are pulling back.
Chinese carmakers are rapidly transforming from export-oriented…

By Samantha Johnson / June 9, 2026

From Sunderland to Spain, Chinese manufacturers are revitalising idle factories and investing where traditional European carmakers are pulling back.

Chinese carmakers are rapidly transforming from export-oriented manufacturers into embedded participants in Europe’s automotive industrial base, a shift increasingly visible across both continental Europe and Britain.
What began as a strategy focused on exporting low-cost electric vehicles (EVs) has evolved into a broader industrial expansion involving local assembly, manufacturing partnerships, research and development (R&D) centres, supply chain investments and production facilities.

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Recent developments involving China’s Chery Automobile and SAIC Motor show that Chinese manufacturers are no longer merely competing with European carmakers; they are increasingly becoming partners in the revitalisation of Europe’s struggling automotive sector.

The latest and perhaps most significant development in Britain is the preliminary agreement between Chery and Nissan to explore production of Chery vehicles at Nissan’s Sunderland facility. Under the memorandum of understanding, Chery passenger vehicles could begin rolling off production lines in Sunderland in the first half of next year, using spare capacity at Britain’s largest automotive plant, which employs about 6,000 workers and has been operating well below its potential.

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The agreement reflects a broader trend in which established European and Japanese manufacturers seek new ways to maximise underused factories while Chinese companies seek local manufacturing footprints to support expansion in Europe.

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