By Michael Elkins
Stellantis (NYSE:STLA) announced Wednesday that the American automaker will invest over €130 million (€1=$1.0797) in the Eisenach Assembly Plant in Germany to add production of the BEV successor vehicle to the Opel Grandland compact SUV currently built at the location. The new vehicle will be built on the all-new STLA Medium platform. Production of the new BEV is scheduled to begin in the second half of 2024.
“Eisenach, our most compact plant in Germany, has demonstrated a strong drive in quality improvements,” said Arnaud Deboeuf, Stellantis chief manufacturing officer. “With this allocation of Stellantis’ new fully BEV platform, STLA Medium, Eisenach plant’s highly skilled workforce will continue to improve the cost and the quality of the vehicles they produce to delight our customers.”
“We have been building top-quality vehicles here in Thuringia for 31 years and improved our competitiveness continuously. We will stay on this clear path with the electric successor to the Opel Grandland,” said Florian Huettl, Opel CEO. “This decision is another important step for Opel on the way to the declared goal of being a purely electric brand in Europe by 2028.”
“At Stellantis, ‘We Win Together’ is a core value and this announcement for Eisenach demonstrates that value in action,” said Xavier Chereau, chairman of the Opel supervisory board and chief human resources & transformation officer at Stellantis. “A focus on improving quality and costs from Eisenach management and employees, combined with the input and social dialogue with the German union representatives, help define the future.”
The Eisenach investment is a key step in meeting the commitments of the Dare Forward 2030 strategic plan. The company seeks to cut emissions in half by 2030 and achieve carbon net zero by 2038. Core targets for Dare Forward 2030 also include 100% of passenger car sales in Europe and 50% of passenger car and light-duty truck sales in the United States to be BEVs by the end of the decade.
Stellantis is investing more than €30B through 2025 in electrification and software to deliver BEVs that meet customer demands.
Shares of STLA are up 0.98% in pre-market trading on Wednesday.