Stellantis Faces 27% Production Drop in Italy Amid Challenges

According to Reuters, the Italian automotive manufacturing union FIM Cisl reported on July 7 that Stellantis' production at its Italian plants fell by 27% year-on-year in the first half of this year and is expected to continue declining. The company has already seen a significant drop in production in Italy for 2024. Specifically, from January to June, Stellantis produced approximately 222,000 vehicles across its six assembly plants in Italy, including about 98,000 light commercial vehicles. Uliano predicts that the company's production in Italy for this year will be around 440,000 units. In December, Stellantis announced a plan aimed at restoring production in Italy. Prior to this, weak demand in the European market (especially for electric vehicles), high energy costs, increased competition from Chinese companies, and adjustments to its vehicle lineup had significantly impacted the company's output in Italy. Last month, Antonio Filosa officially took over as CEO of Stellantis Group. However, new models, including the Fiat 500 hybrid version, are not expected to contribute significantly to the group's production until next year. Ferdinando Uliano, head of FIM Cisl, stated when releasing Stellantis' production data for Italy: "We know that 2025 will not bring a turnaround, but we did not expect the situation to be worse than in 2024." Stellantis has not commented on this report. Last year, Stellantis produced 475,000 vehicles in Italy, including 283,000 passenger cars, marking the lowest level in nearly 70 years and a 37% decline compared to 2023. The decline in demand for electric vehicles and vans, alongside the cessation of certain models, severely impacted the company's production in Italy. In response to FIM Cisl's production data, Italian Industry Minister Adolfo Urso stated that this is part of a broader crisis affecting all European automakers. "This crisis stems from the EU, as its crazy industrial policies bind companies to unattainable Green Deal targets." Last week, Stellantis' head of European operations, Jean-Philippe Imparato, warned that if carbon dioxide emission targets are not met, automakers could face hefty fines from the EU, potentially forcing Stellantis to close factories.