Dongfeng considers building car factory in Italy
Back in April, Dongfeng’s head of Europe, Qian Xie, said that the Group was considering building a factory in Italy with an annual capacity of 100,000 vehicles. Now the considerations are apparently becoming more concrete: Now reports have emerged, stating that negotiations between the Italian government and Dongfeng on this are at an advanced stage.
According to Reuters‘ insider sources, the negotiations are currently centred on the amount the Italian government would contribute to Dongfeng’s investment in such a car factory. The deal could also include other key investors, for example, possible suppliers of Dongfeng could participate in the construction of the factory.
The Italian government has set the strategic goal of increasing car production in the country from 800,000 to 1.3 million vehicles. However, Stellantis is currently the only automotive group that manufactures in Italy – and the government wants it to increase production in the country to one million vehicles. The last time Stellantis achieved this figure in Italy was in 2017, when it was still part of the predecessor company Fiat Chrysler. At the same time, the Italian government is trying to attract other car manufacturers to the country and is also negotiating with Chery from China, according to Reuters.
Dongfeng has only sold its electric cars in Europe in Scandinavia so far. However, market entry in Germany, Italy, Spain and Switzerland is imminent, as the company announced at an event in Madrid in June. The electric models of the Voyah and Mhero sub-brands will be available to order in select European markets starting in the fourth quarter. These are the Voyah Free SUV, the Voyah Dream van and the Mhero 1 pickup.
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