For decades, Western automakers entered Chinese joint ventures primarily to secure access to local buyers. That dynamic has quietly inverted at Ford's manufacturing site in Valencia, Spain, where the American brand is adopting a modular manufacturing architecture engineered by Geely. Rather than spending billions of dollars and nearly four years building a proprietary electric platform from scratch, Ford is integrating an existing Chinese engineering blueprint.

Ford’s new European SUV on Geely’s GEA platform will be built in Valencia from 2028, mixing EV and plug-in options in a joint venture plant.

Ford’s new European SUV on Geely’s GEA platform will be built in Valencia from 2028, mixing EV and plug-in options in a joint venture plant.