{"id":55522,"date":"2026-10-27T07:33:30","date_gmt":"2026-10-27T06:33:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.italpassion.fr\/?p=55522"},"modified":"2026-10-26T19:37:02","modified_gmt":"2026-10-26T18:37:02","slug":"stellantis-wants-4000-workers-for-its-new-41-billion-euro-plant-the-first-ones-are-being-sent-to-china","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.italpassion.fr\/en\/stellantis\/stellantis-veut-4000-ouvriers-pour-sa-nouvelle-usine-a-41-milliards-e-les-premiers-sont-envoyes-en-chine\/","title":{"rendered":"Stellantis wants 4,000 workers for its new \u20ac4.1 billion plant\u2026 the first ones are being sent to China"},"content":{"rendered":"
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After bringing hundreds of Chinese specialists to Spain, Stellantis<\/a> and CATL are now organizing the reverse process. The first Spanish employees of the future battery gigafactory in Figueruelas have been sent to China to learn how to manufacture electric vehicle batteries. This is an important milestone for this 4.1-billion-euro industrial project, which also highlights a reality: Certain skills that are essential for manufacturing LFP batteries are still very rare in Europe.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

After Chinese workers in Spain, Spaniards are heading to China<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We told you about it last June<\/a> : The construction of the future Stellantis and CATL battery plant near Zaragoza was expected to employ up to 2,000 Chinese workers. Late July<\/a>, we learned that 172 Chinese specialists were already on site<\/strong>, with a workforce that was expected to gradually grow to 1,700 people during the most technically demanding phases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, the flow of talent is moving in the opposite direction. The joint venture Contemporary Star Energy (CSE), owned equally by Stellantis and CATL, has just confirmed that its first locally recruited employees are now based in China. More specifically, these professionals have joined CATL\u2019s industrial facilities in Xiamen, in the southeastern part of the country. Their mission? To learn directly from the Chinese teams how to manufacture the battery cells and modules that will roll off the production line at the future Spanish plant in a few months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Announced in early September, this training program has now entered its practical phase. After a period of familiarizing participants with the facilities, Production and maintenance teams are now working directly on the production lines, alongside CATL employees.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A level of expertise that is virtually nonexistent in Europe<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This trip to China is not just a training trip. It addresses a very real industry challenge: Europe still lacks experienced personnel in certain lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery manufacturing processes. Back in September, Paula Mar\u00edn, director of human resources at Contemporary Star Energy, explained that the main challenge was not only to attract talent but also to develop skills \u00abthat are virtually nonexistent in Europe today.\u00bb.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The manufacturing of LFP cells requires expertise in several highly technical stages, including electrode production, cell assembly, and cell formation\u2014a critical process for preparing the batteries for use. However, these skills cannot be acquired solely in a training room. They require hands-on experience on large-scale production lines. This is precisely what CATL can offer at its Chinese plants, where this technology is already widely industrialized. For Stellantis, the transfer of expertise therefore takes place directly through China<\/strong>, before it can be reproduced in Spain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These first employees will then be responsible for training their Spanish colleagues<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Obviously, the goal is not to send the approximately 4,000 future employees of the gigafactory to China. The first employees currently in training will have a second mission upon their return to Figueruelas: to pass on the knowledge they have acquired to the new Spanish recruits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contemporary Star Energy thus aims to gradually build its own production and maintenance teams, capable of operating the plant without relying on specialists sent by CATL in the long term. In its press release dated October 22, the joint venture also noted that this immersion program includes shared cultural activities designed to strengthen relations between the Chinese and Spanish teams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In parallel, Recruitment is already underway in Spain<\/strong>. Contemporary Star Energy is currently posting job openings for maintenance engineers, quality managers, and specialists in training, compliance, and risk prevention. Administrative, IT, and finance positions are also available in Zaragoza and Figueruelas. The project is therefore no longer limited to the construction of the buildings: the organization of the future plant is also beginning to take shape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A \u20ac4.1 billion plant that is strategic for future electric Fiats<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As a reminder, the Figueruelas Gigafactory represents an announced investment of 4.1 billion euros<\/strong>, with a production capacity of up to 50 GWh per year. The facility is set to become one of Europe\u2019s leading manufacturing centers for LFP batteries, a technology that is less expensive than NMC batteries and particularly promising for reducing the price of electric cars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Stellantis, the stakes are high. In particular, this plant is set to supply the batteries for the next-generation electric Fiat 500, expected in 2027, as well as for other electric models in the group. However, the timeline remains tight. While operations were initially scheduled to begin in late 2026, The start of battery production has been postponed until the first few months of 2027<\/strong>. In the meantime, the teams trained in China will need to return to Spain, share their knowledge, and help commission the facilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n