Ford Partners With Geely To Produce “Multi-Energy” Cars In Valencia

Ford and Chinese automaker Geely have announced a joint venture to build vehicles at Ford's assembly plant in Valencia, Spain, starting in 2028. Ford will own 66 percent of the venture and Geely the rest. The plant will produce a new Ford Bronco for European buyers, a new Ford-Geely "multi-energy" crossover (industry shorthand for plug-in hybrid), and two electric SUVs under the Geely brand. The Ford Kuga, already sold with a plug-in hybrid option, will keep being built at the plant during the changeover.

This is a car-manufacturing story, not a home-energy one, but it touches the same shift toward electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles that's reshaping how households think about power at home. As more automakers, including Ford, lean into electric and plug-in hybrid models for markets like Europe, that trend can eventually affect what's available in showrooms elsewhere, including options for home EV charging setups.

The deal drew political pushback in the US, where a Michigan congressman accused Ford of helping a Chinese company expand into markets the US is trying to protect. Ford defended the partnership, saying it's necessary to compete with Chinese automakers in Europe and pointing to similar deals it has made with Renault and Volkswagen. None of this changes anything for US car buyers right now, but it's a sign of how tangled the politics around EVs and hybrids have become on both sides of the Atlantic.