MG will allocate 200 million to a plant in Galicia to assemble 120,000 cars per year. But they are not building a real factory, but a light assembly center. The parts will arrive already manufactured from abroad and will only be assembled here to avoid tariffs and label the product as made in Spain. Politicians celebrate the Chinese investment, although the jobs will be temporary, the technology will remain abroad, and the industrial benefit for the region will be minimal.
Assembly without technology or local supply chain 🏭
MG's model replicates that of other Chinese brands in Europe: importing already manufactured components and performing basic on-site assembly. This avoids import tariffs and allows the use of local origin labels, but it does not generate technology transfer or supplier development. While European factories close and the Galician auxiliary industry sinks, this project only offers low-skilled and temporary jobs. The promise of manufacturing is, in reality, a logistical trick to bypass customs.
The IKEA factory for cars: you bring the box, you assemble at home 🛠️
So, MG is going to assemble 120,000 cars a year like someone assembling an IKEA shelf: pre-cut parts, basic instructions, and a screwdriver. Local politicians rub their hands together while announcing quality employment, which later turns out to be 12-hour shifts screwing on bumpers. Sure, the green made in Spain sticker looks very nice in the catalog. A crumb labeled as a steak, but hey, at least it's not an Amazon logistics center.