MILAN — Stellantis, the world’s No. 4 automaker, said on Thursday it plans to invest more than 30 billion euros ($35.54 billion) through 2025 on electrifying its vehicle lineup.
The company, which was formed in January from the merger of Fiat Chrysler and France’s PSA, said its strategy will be supported by five battery plants in Europe and North America as it gears up to compete with EV leader Tesla and other automakers globally.
“This transformation period is a wonderful opportunity to reset the clock and start a new race,” Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares said on a webcast.
Stellantis said it is targeting more than 70 percent of sales in Europe and over 40 percent in the U.S. to be low-emission vehicles — either battery or hybrid electric — by 2030.
It said all 14 of its vehicle brands, including Peugeot, Jeep, Ram, Fiat and Opel, will offer fully electrified vehicles.
Earlier, Stellantis flagged that 2021 got off to a better-than-expected start despite a chip shortage that has hit automakers worldwide.
The company said its first-half margins on adjusted operating profits were expected to exceed an annual target of between 5.5 percent and 7.5 percent.
Positive pricing and product mix helped it to expect a “strong margin performance” in the first half, Stellantis said in an earlier statement ahead of its EV strategy event.
“The global Stellantis team has also responded strongly to volume constraints caused by semiconductor shortages, implementing very effective cost control measures,” the automaker said.
Stellantis said that, in line with previous forecasts, it expected a negative industrial free cash flow in the first half, also caused by the negative impact of lower than planned production volumes.
It added, however, that synergies were well on track to exceed the first year’s target, helping to “materially contribute to the full year cash flow performance, which is still expected to be positive.”
Formed in January by the merger of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and PSA Group, Stellantis has promised more than 5 billion euros ($5.9 billion) in annual synergies.