Geely is reportedly planning to build a new EV factory for its premium brand Polestar, according to two people with direct knowledge on the matter.
The sources told Reuters that Geely wants this plant to have an annual manufacturing capacity of 30,000 EVs, and that its location will be the western city of Chongqing, in China. Both Geely as well as Polestar declined to offer any comments.
This report comes just as foreign carmakers such as Tesla and BMW have expanded their EV production in the world’s largest car market, sourcing major components such as batteries locally and ultimately exporting the final product.
Read: Polestar 2 Recalled Over Software Glitch That Cuts Power
Geely happens to be China’s best-known carmaker internationally, seen as how it owns Volvo and Lotus, nearly half of Proton and 9.7% of Daimler AG. Using Polestar, it builds the low-volume Polestar 1 hybrid in Chengdu and the Polestar 2 volume sedans in Taizhou.
Its next project will be the series production of the Precept sedan concept, displayed at this year’s Beijing Auto Show. While specifics weren’t given, Polestar did confirm that development is already underway for the Precept and that the road-going model will be built at a new production facility in China.
Eventually, Polestar aims to sell bigger and more sporty vehicles at its showrooms, which are currently located in nine countries. The carmaker wants to nearly double its presence globally by the end of this year (from 23 to 45 showroom locations).
Geely is also building a separate factory in China for Lotus-branded SUVs.
