Overview
- Volvo, the Belgian federal government and the regional government of Flanders signed a memorandum on July 15 that commits up to €119 million for industrial, innovation, ecological and financing measures for Volvo Car Gent.
- The MoU explicitly opens the door to contract assembly for third‑party brands, a move that could raise plant utilisation by letting Ghent build Geely‑linked models locally to sidestep EU tariffs on imports.
- Volvo said the public measures will be combined with undisclosed internal efficiency actions but the company has not revealed what those actions are or the timeline for them.
- Ghent is Belgium’s last car plant, employs nearly 6,600 people and produced 212,177 vehicles in 2025, and its position has weakened after the EX30 was withdrawn from the US market, a recent supplier strike halted final assembly, and Volvo invested in a large new EV plant in Slovakia.
- If implemented, the deal would aim to protect regional manufacturing jobs and supplier activity, but the long‑term role of Ghent remains conditional on Volvo’s internal restructuring and how soon contract assembly or other demand can raise output.