Spain’s Electric Car Future Hinges on Mérida and €800M Chinese Battery Plant (xataka.com)

• Hunan Yuneng building LFP cathode factory in Mérida, Spain.
• Investment: €800M, capacity: 300,000 t/yr, 500 jobs.
• Jinhong Gas establishes subsidiary for nitrogen supply.
• Extremadura becoming EV supply chain hub.
• Lithium imported, not locally mined.

"Hunan Yuneng is building a cathode material factory for LFP batteries in Mérida, Extremadura. The investment is about €800 million, capacity 300,000 tons per year, creating 500 direct jobs. Operations are expected by end of 2026. Jinhong Gas has set up a subsidiary to supply nitrogen. Extremadura is positioning itself as a strategic node in Europe’s EV supply chain, though lithium is not sourced locally. The plant is part of a trend where Chinese manufacturers bypass EU tariffs by producing in Spain."