Rome has asked the automotive group Stellantis to set up its next mega-factory of batteries for electric vehicles in Italy, Economic Development Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti said on Wednesday.
Read also: Automotive: Stellantis reorganizes its sales network in Europe
The government invited Stellantis to discuss
“the choice of installing in Italy its 'gigafactory' for the production of electric batteries,”
the minister told Parliament the day after a round table bringing together representatives of the government, unions and the group.
"We expect it to be established in Italy, and we are awaiting a decision from the company,"
said Giancarlo Giorgetti. Asked by AFP, the group declined to comment.
Stellantis had announced in mid-April a range of 500 to 800 kilometers for its next generation of electric vehicles from 2023, several hundred kilometers more than most cars today on sale.
The group, resulting from the merger of Peugeot-Citroën and Fiat-Chrysler, also intends to compete with its competitors in the production of batteries, the most expensive element of electric vehicles.
130 gigawatt hours (GWh) of batteries per year
The group plans to build factories and establish partnerships to produce 130 gigawatt hours (GWh) of batteries per year by 2025, and 250 GWh by 2030. Stellantis' two factories in Douvrin, in the north from France, and to Kaiserslautern in Germany, are expected to supply the first 50 GWh, according to the group's chief executive, Carlos Tavares.
The Stellantis plant in Melfi in southern Italy will produce four new models of electric vehicles from 2024, the unions announced Tuesday after their meeting with management.
According to them, the two production lines of the plant, which has an annual capacity of 400,000 units, will be merged into a
"super-line"
.
