![\"Stellantis](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/netherlands\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Citroen_C5_Rennes.jpg\")
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Dongfeng Motor is set to finalize a deal to produce vehicles at a Stellantis plant located in Rennes, southwest of Paris: If this report from the French media is confirmed, it will mark the first time a Chinese-owned automaker has produced vehicles on a large scale in that country.<\/p>\n
According to Franceinfo<\/a>, the companies had reached an agreement to allocate production capacity to the Asian automaker at a manufacturing complex where a single model is currently produced: the Citro\u00ebn C5 Aircross compact crossover, in both hybrid and gasoline versions.<\/p>\n That facility has a surplus production capacity of approximately 40,000 units, which will be sufficient to produce a single Dongfeng model, according to the report, which cites as sources individuals involved in the matter, who stated that the agreement will be formalized shortly.<\/p>\n The collaboration between the two companies dates back to 1992, when the DPCA joint venture was established in China to produce Peugeot and Citro\u00ebn models for the Chinese market. Just a few days ago, the alliance was reaffirmed with the announcement of an agreement to assemble four new Jeep and Peugeot models at a DPCA plant located in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province.<\/p>\n The upgrades to the facility will require an investment of approximately $1.3 billion, which will be financed primarily by Dongfeng.<\/p>\n The Tariff Effect<\/p>\n The report comes amid other initiatives by Chinese automakers seeking not only to avoid tariffs imposed by the European Union but also to mitigate the impact of the conflict in Iran.<\/p>\n Just a few days ago, Elvis Cheng, Xpeng\u2019s director for Northeast Europe, said at a conference organized by the Financial Times<\/a> that he is in talks with Volkswagen to see if \u201cthere is a possibility that we can find a location here in Europe.\u201d<\/p>\n Cheng added that some of the German automaker\u2019s plants are already \u201ca bit outdated\u201d for the Chinese firm\u2019s requirements, so they are not ruling out the possibility of building their own facility.<\/p>\n At the same event, but in a separate interview with Bloomberg<\/a>, BYD\u2019s executive vice president, Stella Li, revealed that they are in negotiations with Stellantis and other European companies, seeking to utilize disused European assembly lines.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/netherlands\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LeapmotorAssemblyLineWeb-1024x771-1.jpg\")
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