After several months of uncertainty, Stellantis is preparing to provide a lifeline to its Ellesmere Port plant by investing a substantial amount in its conversion to produce electric vans.
According to the Financial Times, citing three people briefed on the plans, Stellantis will announce on Tuesday that it will retain the Cheshire site once production of the current generation Vauxhall Astra ends in the coming months. An investment “of a few hundred million pounds” will see the plant adapted to the production of electric vehicles.
Automotive News Europe has also previously reported that the future of the Ellesmere Port plant is secure. Citing a source at the automaker, the site said Stellantis may allocate production of electric vans to Ellesmere Port to supplement production of ICE-powered vans at Luton, where Vauxhall Vivaro, Peugeot Expert and Citroën Dispatch are currently in full production. capacity.
The most recent report comes just days after Stellantis UK Managing Director Alison Jones explained why no decision has yet been made regarding Ellesmere Port’s future. “In terms of the attractiveness of manufacturing in the UK, there are decisions about manufacturing, trade and location of customer base,” she explained.
“The decision for any factory is the cost of energy, which we know is different in the UK from other places in the world; the cost of staff and employees; and logistics to move your components to be able to build. So you have this practicality, and then you have this proximity with your suppliers and your customers.
“We build carbon calculations into every decision we make, so that’s a key piece. After Brexit, we have an agreement that runs until 2023 around rules of origin – which then changes in 2027.
“When you think of EVs, the ability to source batteries close to where you make them, and then tie them to tariffs that might or might not be imposed as we go along, is key. and a consideration.
“And then of course, where our customers are and the logistics of moving vehicles from their place of manufacture to customers. Those three things are considerations in deciding where we build.”
Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares recently hinted that the plant would be safe, saying he expected “a number of approvals to be given by the UK administration” that will allow the plant to remain commercially viable.
Stellantis now offers six electric vans on the e-CMP architecture: the Citroën ë-Berlingo, Peugeot e-Partner and Opel Combo-e and the biggest Citroënn ë-Shipping, Peugeot e-Expert and Opel Vivaro-e.
Each of the six commercial electric vehicles is also offered as a minivan variant for passenger transport, although it is not yet confirmed which, if any, are intended for production at Ellesmere Harbor.
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Source: www.autocar.co.uk
This notice was published: 2021-07-02 15:59:17
