The decision was made during a Cabinet meeting held at Village Urugwiro on September 18, 2026, chaired by President Paul Kagame.
Among the resolutions adopted was the approval of an investment agreement for the construction of a plant to assemble electric vehicles in Rwanda.
The approval marks a new milestone after months of discussions surrounding the project. In April 2026, President Kagame received Xu Hui, Vice President of Chery Holding Group and Chairman of Rich Resource International Investment, for discussions that focused on investment opportunities in Rwanda, including vehicle assembly.
Although the Cabinet has approved the investment agreement, details regarding the value of the investment, the location of the plant, its planned production capacity, the start date for construction and when the facility is expected to begin operations have not yet been disclosed.
Chery’s global expansion
Chery was established in 1997 and is headquartered in Wuhu City, Anhui Province, China.
The company began manufacturing vehicles in 1999 and expanded its sales operations in 2003.
Chery has developed a broad global strategy aimed at transforming the automotive industry. As of 2024, the company had nine vehicle brands, including Fulwin, Exeed, Jetour, iCar/iCaur and Luxeed, which was developed in partnership with Chinese technology company Huawei.
Other brands associated with the group include Karry, Omoda, Jaecoo, Lepas, Exlantix and Aiqar.
These brands serve different markets, with some vehicles produced primarily for the Chinese domestic market while others are exported internationally.
Chery, Exeed and Jetour, for example, are sold both in China and in overseas markets.
Omoda, Lepas and Jaecoo are primarily focused on markets outside China, while iCar is sold in China and marketed as iCaur in international markets. Luxeed and Karry are focused exclusively on the Chinese domestic market.
Chery has also partnered with Jaguar Land Rover since 2012 to manufacture Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles in China.
In 2024, Chery expanded into Spain through an agreement with Ebro, one of Europe’s established automotive manufacturers, under which vehicles began being produced and marketed under the Ebro brand.
Chery took its Tiggo 7 and Tiggo 8 models, upgraded them and rebranded them as the Ebro S700 and Ebro S800, respectively.
The company aims to sell 50,000 vehicles of these models by 2027, with sales projected to reach 150,000 units by 2029.
In 2025, Omoda and Jaecoo were introduced as new brands under the company. Within 27 months of their launch, sales of the two brands had reportedly reached 600,000 vehicles. The two brands are expected to sell at least 1.4 million vehicles by 2030.
Chery’s financial growth
Financial figures show that Chery generated approximately $12.8 billion in revenue in 2022, rising to $22.5 billion in 2023 and $37.2 billion in 2024. In the first quarter of 2025, the company recorded revenue of approximately $9.4 billion.
Over the same periods, the company’s profits stood at approximately $702 million in 2022, $1.44 billion in 2023, $1.98 billion in 2024 and $455 million in the first quarter of 2025.
The approval of the investment agreement comes as Rwanda continues to promote the adoption of electric vehicles.
Fully electric vehicles, their batteries and charging equipment imported into Rwanda have been granted VAT exemptions as part of efforts to encourage the transition to electric mobility.
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