Manufacturing in France: opening, buying or ramping up a plant.

Why foreign manufacturers choose France

The EY attractiveness barometer published in May 2026 counted 852 foreign investment projects in France in 2025, including 354 factory creations or extensions, which keeps France in first place in Europe for industrial projects. Foreign-controlled companies already employ about 762,000 people in French industry (Insee, 2022). The usual reasons: a large market, engineering skills, low-carbon and comparatively stable electricity from nuclear power, port and logistics infrastructure, and a strong public commitment to reindustrialisation.

Recent examples show the range of sectors: ProLogium launched its battery plant project in Dunkirk, Foxconn announced a chip assembly plant near Bordeaux, and BYD is studying a car plant in France.

Public support schemes

Business France and the regional development agencies are the first contacts: they help identify sites, aid and administrative contacts at no cost.

Sites and permits

• Ready-to-build sites. The State has labelled industrial sites (sites clés en main) where land, utilities and preliminary studies are prepared to cut lead times.
• Environmental permits. Many plants are classified installations (ICPE) and need an environmental authorisation or registration, with public consultation for larger projects.
• Shorter procedures. The 2023 green industry law aims to cut the average permitting time for a plant from 17 to 9 months.
• Energy connection. Grid connection for electricity-intensive plants is a project in itself; start it early.

Buying an existing plant instead

Acquiring a French plant gives you a team, permits and customers from day one, but also a works council, a collective agreement and the history of the site. Before signing, an operational due diligence checks the real capacity, the condition of equipment, the management team and the social climate. After closing, a 100-day plan with a strong site director is decisive. See operational due diligence of a French acquisition.

Staffing a new plant: the real critical path

Funding and permits are visible on a project plan. Staffing is often underestimated. A new plant needs its founding team six to twelve months before start of production: plant director, production, quality, maintenance, supply chain, HR and finance. Each of these managers usually has a three-month notice period with the current employer, and the engineers must then be trained on your process.

1. Appoint the plant director first; he or she builds the rest of the team.
2. Hire quality and maintenance leaders early: they qualify equipment and processes.
3. Plan the HR framework: collective agreement, shift patterns, works council once the headcount requires it.
4. Use interim managers to start before the permanent team is complete.

The ramp-up: where most delays happen

A ramp-up fails for predictable reasons: a bottleneck machine, scrap rates that do not fall, suppliers that do not follow, operators trained too late, and a management team that changes during the launch. Experienced ramp-up managers and engineers sent on site for a few months reduce the risk more than any additional investment. See production ramp-up bottlenecks.

How MT-Transition supports new and acquired plants

We provide the people side of an industrial project in France: interim plant directors and production directors, the permanent recruitment of the founding team, and engineers and experts in technical assistance for the ramp-up, invoiced per day. Our managers report to head office in English. See our support for foreign companies.

Frequently asked questions