China's Strategic EU Investments
China Accelerates European EV Factory Investments to Pre-empt New EU Veto Power
Chinese automakers are rushing to lock in European factory deals before Brussels gains the power to block them. The EU's proposed Industrial Acceleration Law would require any electric vehicle project worth more than €100 million to get approval from a national authority or the European Commission itself — giving Europe an effective veto over Chinese investment. El Periódico reports that Chinese firms are racing to sign agreements before that law takes full effect.
The urgency is real. On June 12, 2024, the EU announced provisional import tariffs of up to 38.1% on Chinese EVs — hitting SAIC hardest, with BYD facing 17.4% and Geely 20%, on top of an existing 10% duty, according to Financial Times. Building inside Europe was the obvious escape route. Now Brussels wants to close it.
The €100 Million Threshold That Changes Everything
The Industrial Acceleration Law is still working its way through Spain's legislature. But its core rule is already reshaping corporate decisions. Any EV factory project that exceeds €100 million in investment must go through a formal vetting process. Authorities can examine where the money comes from, how much state aid the company received at home, and whether the project threatens Europe's industrial independence, according to La Opinión de Murcia.
This is not an outright ban. Analysts at the European Centre for International Political Economy describe it as a "quality control" filter. The real target is so-called "screwdriver assembly" — factories that import almost all parts from China and do very little actual manufacturing in Europe. If approved, the law would force Chinese firms to prove genuine local production or risk rejection.
BYD and Chery Move Fast Before the Door Closes
China's biggest EV maker, BYD, announced its first European passenger car factory in Szeged, Hungary, back in December 2023, according to Reuters. The plant is estimated to cost €2 billion and is expected to start production in 2025. BYD chairman Wang Chuanfu has set a goal of capturing 5% of the EU EV market even before that factory opens.
In Spain, Chery Automobile signed a joint venture with local firm Ebro-EV Motors in April 2024 to produce cars at the former Nissan plant in Barcelona. Spain badly needs those jobs. But the deal now sits in a gray zone: if the Industrial Acceleration Law passes before the project is fully approved, it could face a Brussels review. Spain wants the investment. Brussels wants oversight. That tension has no easy answer.
A Europe Divided Over Jobs Versus Security
Not every EU country sees Chinese factories as a threat. Hungary's Viktor Orbán has welcomed BYD with open arms, viewing it as a chance to become a manufacturing hub between East and West. Germany, which sells millions of luxury cars in China each year, is reportedly lobbying to soften the veto rules, fearing Beijing's retaliation, according to Politico.
France and Italy take the opposite view, backing the veto as a shield for economic sovereignty. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has been blunt: "Global markets are now flooded with cheaper Chinese electric cars. And their price is kept artificially low by huge state subsidies." China's commerce minister Wang Wentao, who has toured Paris and Barcelona to lobby against tariffs, calls the EU's approach "naked economic coercion," according to Xinhua.
Chinese Firms Scramble to Look More European
To get ahead of the veto, Chinese automakers are now rushing to sign contracts with European parts suppliers like Gestamp and Forvia. The strategy is simple: the more local content they can prove, the harder it is for Brussels to block them. UBS analysts note that even with a 25% tariff, BYD still holds a 30% cost advantage over rivals like Volkswagen or Renault — making factory localization the logical next step regardless of politics.
The numbers make the stakes clear. Chinese-made cars — including Teslas and Dacias built in China — made up 19.5% of all EVs sold in Europe in 2023, according to Transport & Environment. That share is expected to hit 25% by end of 2024. Without localization, up to 800,000 Chinese EVs could reach European shores annually by 2025, according to PwC. The race to plant flags inside Europe, before Brussels raises the drawbridge, is very much on.
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