The shareholders of PSA and those of Fiat Chrysler (FCA) on Monday voted for the union of the two European automobile groups, those of the French in the morning and those of the Italian in the afternoon.
This marriage will give birth to Stellantis, world No. 4 in terms of vehicles sold and No. 3 in turnover behind the Japanese Toyota and the German Volkswagen.
The merger will take effect on Saturday January 16.
Stellantis will be listed from Monday 18 in Paris and Milan, and on the New York Stock Exchange from Tuesday 19. It will employ more than 400,000 people and house 14 emblematic and very different brands such as Citroën and Maserati (already briefly married 50 years ago), Fiat and Opel, Peugeot and Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Dodge or Jeep.
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Fusion PSA / Fiat Chrysler: a green light but under conditions
"I have rarely had the feeling as much as today to live a moment of history", declared the chairman of the supervisory board of PSA, Louis Gallois.
"We will play a leading role over the next decade by redefining mobility as our founding fathers did with great energy," said FCA president John Elkann, referring to a "merger historical ”.
"A question of survival"
"This merger was a question of survival, and that goes for Fiat as for PSA", analyzes Giuliano Noci, professor of strategy at the Polytechnic business school in Milan.
In addition to the devastating effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, the two groups are indeed facing “enormous technological and strategic challenges” (electric vehicles, digitization, autonomous driving).
The Stellantis brands will reduce their development and construction costs, and complete their offer in all ranges.
“Thanks to its union with PSA, Fiat Chrysler will be able to strengthen its presence in Europe,” adds Giuseppe Berta, professor at Bocconi University in Milan and Fiat specialist.
"Conversely, the French group will be able to regain a foothold in the United States thanks to its Italian-American ally".
PSA and Fiat estimate that the synergies will ultimately save up to 5 billion euros per year.
The French and Italian governments "will however" ensure that Stellantis "also contributes to industrial employment in Italy and France", French Minister of the Economy Bruno Le Maire and his Italian counterpart Stefano Patuanelli said in a statement. spouse.
Unions concerned about impact on employment
The chairman of the board of PSA and future CEO of Stellantis, Carlos Tavares, stressed at the end of 2019 that no plant closures were planned, and thanked on Monday the social partners "who have been constantly supporting this fusion ”.
The CFDT of PSA for its part welcomed a project "which makes sense", but "still has reservations".
"We remain worried about the consequences in terms of jobs in production plants and research and development", writes the union which regrets "the lack of commitment on the rates of use of industrial sites".
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The CGT in Sochaux expects "new attacks on employment, wages and collective rights".
"The only positive point of this merger is that we are now 400,000 employees, that is to say a much greater force than before to defend, across borders, our common interests as workers", underlines the union .
