Volvo Cars launches European production of best-selling electric SUV EX30 at North Sea Port

On Friday, April 25, Volvo Cars reached a significant milestone with the start of European production of the EX30. This fully electric compact SUV will now also be manufactured at the company’s Belgian facility in Ghent, further strengthening the automotive cluster at North Sea Port.

Launched at the end of 2023, the EX30 was an immediate hit with consumers and has become one of the best-selling electric vehicles of 2024. Production in Ghent will soon be expanded to include the EX30 Cross Country later this year.

The addition of the EX30 to the Ghent production line will create approximately 350 new jobs, bringing the total number of employees at the site to nearly 6,600. To support the production, Volvo Cars has invested around €200 million in recent years in the Belgian plant. Key upgrades include the implementation of a new vehicle platform, the installation of 600 new and upgraded robots, expansion of the battery hall, a new door production line, and a new battery assembly line. The first EX30 produced in Europe was driven off the line by Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever and European Commissioner for Climate, Net-Zero and Clean Growth Wopke Hoekstra.

Local production of the EX30 supports the EU’s sustainability and competitiveness agenda—it is an investment in a future that fosters job creation, innovation, and electrification. "After the decision in late 2023 to bring EX30 production to Ghent, we prepared everything in record time," said Stefan Fesser, Managing Director of Volvo Car Ghent. "Thanks to the dedication and teamwork of our entire staff, we were able to cut the industrialization time in half."

Volvo Cars is a key player in the automotive segment at North Sea Port. Automotive manufacturing in the port generates significant flows of parts and finished vehicles and represents the port’s largest industrial employer. It also supports a wide range of indirect jobs through suppliers and logistics providers. Moreover, the port is one of Europe’s primary logistics hubs for vehicle import and export, handling thousands of vehicles and trailers via roll-on/roll-off transport.

The Volvo Cars factory is ideally located in Ghent, within the North Sea Port area. Opened in 1965, it is now the only remaining car manufacturing facility in Belgium. Ghent is one of two Volvo Cars production sites in Europe, alongside Torslanda, Sweden. A third facility is currently under construction in Košice, Slovakia. In addition to the EX30, the Ghent plant also manufactures the fully electric EX40 and EC40, the V60 plug-in hybrid, and the XC40 KERS. In 2024, the plant is projected to produce over 186,000 vehicles.