Volvo’s Gent factory is saved. During the Strategy 2026 call, the carmaker has confirmed that a second brand will roll off its production lines in the near future. No concrete names were unveiled, but a Geely-model seems most likely.
No factory closures
The employees at Volvo Car Gent can take a sigh of relief. During its investor call, Strategy 2026, Volvo has confirms that it will not close any factories in Europe, despite battling a serious overcapacity problem.
To avoid redundancy, the Belgian site obtains a special position within the group. To save cost and boost efficiency every plant must focus on a single platform strategy. For Europe, Torslanda, Sweden, and Kosiçe, Slovakia, will exclusively build models from the SPA3-structure.
“Compelling plan”
But Gent receives the status of a ‘contract manufacturing plant’, expanding on this standard and building two platforms, aimed at small and medium cars. “We have a bright future for Ghent. A compelling plan”, said Francesca Gamboni, head of manufacturing and supply chain, during the call. The only other factory with a two-platform
She also acknowledged that the cost of the factory has been lowered to benchmark plants in Eastern Europe: “with help from the Belgian government”. A special official taskforce managed to secure 119 million tax payers money to support the factory in investment and competitiveness.
In contrast to similar financial injections for Ford in Genk and Opel in Antwerp, this time it worked to keep the factory buzzing.
Who steps in?
The big question, ofcourse, is which automotive name will join the Volvo models in Ghent, never having produced any other car brand in its sixty-year long history. After Hakan Samuelsson’s public offering to parent company Geely, it seems but logical that a car from Zeekr, Lynk&Co or the Geely-brand itself will find a new cradle in the harbour town.
Not in the least because Chinese newcomers can avoid punitive tariffs by producing locally and have a keen eye on expanding into Europe where they have a stronger foothold than in the U.S.
More automation
As the EX30 sits on the SEA2-platform, it could be either a model built on the CMA-structure from the XC40, or a completely new architecture aimed at the medium-size category. The latter would require an extensive rework of the tooling in place.
Gamboni said that bringing the cost down triggered interest from “a waiting line” of candidates, but that a definitive choice has already been made. At this stage, she could not disclose the name of the brand that will step in. She also mentioned a stronger focus on automatisation to keep labour cost down. This could also refer to Chinese production methods coming along with the newly allocated car model.
Biggest model offensive ever
In any case, Gent will get deeper involved into the Chinese side of Volvo. But that accounts for the brand itself as well. The car maker will launch its biggest model offensive in its history, with thirteen new models up to 2030 (seven are targeted for Europe, the others for China).
But to improve on margins they will use three times more component sharing than now: from 10% to 30%. The days of an independently operating Volvo within the Geely constellation are over.
For CEO Samuelsson this particular keynote session was his last at the helm of Volvo. His contract ends in April 2027. He expects that the company will reveal more info on his succession before the year’s end.
Best in SDV
During the investor call, Samuelsson didn’t shy away to adress the software problems that have been plaguing the company since the launch of the EX90. But he also added that the sector falls apart in two groups: “Those who have gone through and developed their own software, and those who still have to do it.”
He admitted it was painful at times, due to the reliability issues, but that the new Hugin core-stack, which was launched with the EX60, has made sure that Volvo belongs to the first group, giving his company an edge. In fact, Volvo is the only Western car brand having received a Standards & Poor top score of 5 for SDV (Software-Defined Vehicle) readiness.
BEVs at 5% in EU
The company also sticks to its electric strategy and wants to become the leading premium brand in Europe. In fact, with 5% in the BEV segment, Volvo atteins double its usual share in the EU, on par with German rivals.
To the question whether he believes that he will leave the company in a good shape, Samuelsson wittingly answered: “I’m leaving.” That full stop hints at the unlikeliness of seeing him return a second time.
