France to host Huawei’s first European factory, an insider claims

Huawei simply cannot stand still. The other day the Chinese giant announced that it would launch “cutting-edge, innovative and disruptive” products in 2024 and now it appears that it is heading to France to build a factory next year.

Reuters reports information from a source close to the matter. Huawei's first European factory is exciting news considering that many European states restrict the use of equipment made by Huawei and China's ZTE for “security reasons.” Add to that the deterioration of relations between the United States and China (remember what the premiere of the Huawei Mate 60 Pro did to some American officials?) and you have a veritable high-tech vaudeville entertainment.

Plans for a French Huawei factory in 2024 actually date back to 2020, but things have been delayed by the Covid pandemic. We know that the factory could be built in Brumath, near Strasbourg, but we do not know when it will be operational. Huawei has so far not responded to Reuters' request for comment.

In 2020, Huawei announced that it would invest 200 million euros (about $215 million) in building a mobile network equipment factory in eastern France. At the time, the factory was expected to initially employ 300 people, then 500 in the long term, and that its products would be destined for Huawei's European customers.

Overall, France maintains a special relationship with Huawei. In July 2023, Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and French Minister of Economy and Finance Bruno Le Maire participated in the Sino-French economic and financial dialogue in Beijing, China. During these discussions, China said it hoped France could “stabilize the tone” of EU-China relations. This is important for France because China is France's third largest trading partner behind the EU and the United States, and French companies increasingly fear being caught in the crossfire in the growing rivalry between the two global economic superpowers.