Stellantis Bets 30 Billion On It’s EV Future | 08 July 2021

Episode 1137,   Jul 08, 2021, 11:00 AM

Today’s big EV stories:
• Stellantis makes 30 billion euro wager on electric vehicle market
• Stellantis to source over 260 GWH in EV battery capacity by 2030
• After Slow Start, Stellantis Bets Big On EVs
• Stellantis delays affordable electric cars until 2026
• Vauxhall EV-only by 2028 as Stellantis ramps up electrification
• Stellantis Invests in Its First All-EV Plant
• The Stellantis Brands Have New 'Green' Slogans And They're Pretty Terrible

how #1137.
 
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Good morning, good afternoon and good evening wherever you are in the world, welcome to EV News Daily for Thursday 8th July. It’s  Martyn Lee here and I go through every EV story so you don't have to.
 
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STELLANTIS MAKES 30 BILLION EURO WAGER ON ELECTRIC VEHICLE MARKET
 
- Stellantis (STLA.MI), 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, formed in January from the merger of Italian-American automaker 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 electric vehicle (EV) leader Tesla (TSLA.O) and other automakers globally.
 
- Stellantis said it is targeting more than 70% of sales in Europe and over 40% in the United States to be low-emission vehicles - either battery or hybrid electric - by 2030. It aims to make the total cost of owning an EV equal to that of a gasoline-powered model by 2026.
 
- Stellantis said it wants to secure more than 130 gigawatt hours (GWh) of battery capacity by 2025 and more than 260 GWh by 2030. It said it has signed memorandums of understanding with two lithium geothermal brine process partners in North America and Europe to ensure supplies of lithium, a critical raw material for batteries.
 
 
 
STELLANTIS TO SOURCE OVER 260 GWH IN EV BATTERY CAPACITY BY 2030
 
- Stellantis currently has two gigafactory projects, one in France and one in Germany, under its joint venture with Total, called Automotive Cells Company (ACC).
  Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares announced that it would also be building a gigaplant in Italy at its engine facility, and one in the US.
 
- Stellantis said that its plans included dual battery chemistries, including a high energy-density option and a nickel cobalt-free alternative by 2024, with a solid-state battery technology introduction planned in 2026.
 
- As part of its strategy, Stellantis is also aiming to reduce battery costs using its technical expertise and manufacturing synergies, with it targeting to reduce EV battery pack costs by over 40% from 2020 to 2024 and by more than an additional 20% by 2030.
 
 
AFTER SLOW START, STELLANTIS BETS BIG ON EVS
 
- Just by mid-decade, said Tavares, the goal will be to have 55 plug-based vehicles in global showrooms: 40 battery-electric vehicles, or BEVs, and another 15 plug-in hybrid-electric vehicles, or PHEVs.
 
- The PSA side of Stellantis, drawing on experience from core brands Citroën, Opel and Peugeot, is further ahead when it comes to electrification. In the U.S., the former Fiat Chrysler brands trail the competition. It currently offers no all-electric models and just two plug-ins, the Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid minivan and the new Jeep Wrangler 4xe. The response to the 4xe has taken company officials by surprise, generating more than 20% of Wrangler sales since its April debut.
 
 
STELLANTIS DELAYS AFFORDABLE ELECTRIC CARS UNTIL 2026
 
- Stellantis EV Day 2021 was embarrassing. The 3 hour video presentation was all about putting together multiple nonsense commercials and delaying the introduction of affordable electric cars.
 
- Four BEV-centric platforms are the backbone of the electrified vehicles from Stellantis brands. The platforms are designed with a high level of flexibility (length and width) and component sharing, delivering economies of scale as each platform can support production of up to two million units per year.
The four platforms are:
● STLA Small, with a range up to 500 kilometers/300 miles
● STLA Medium, with a range up to 700 kilometers/440 miles
● STLA Large, with a range up to 800 kilometers/500 miles
● STLA Frame, with a range up to 800 kilometers/500 miles
 
- Stellantis recognizes that CTP (cell-to-pack) combined with cobalt-free batteries are the two most important technologies available today to make affordable electric cars that compete with ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) cars in price and availability.
However, Stellantis will delay the introduction of these two technologies until 2024. Moreover, only in 2026 the TCO (total cost of ownership) of Stellantis’ electric cars will match ICE cars
 
- With this decision, Stellantis leaves an open door for Chinese automakers to arrive and dominate the European EV market very soon
 
 
STELLANTIS TO INVEST €30 BILLION IN E-MOBILITY
 
- In the US, performance brand Dodge plans to launch its first electric muscle car in 2024, Ram will sell an electric version the 1500 in 2024. Jeep wants to offer plug-in hybrids in all SUV segments by 2024, the Wrangler 4xe is already sold out for this year. The Jeep Wagoneer is to be targeted as an all-electric premium SUV primarily for the US market.
 
- In addition to the gigafactories of ACC (the joint venture together with Total subsidiary Saft), the cells are to be sourced from CATL, BYD, SVOLT, Samsung and LG Energy Solution, preferably from their European plants. The 50 GWh for the USA are to be procured from partners, while names are not yet mentioned since final negotiations are reportedly still underway.
In 2030, the demand will be the 260 GWh mentioned above, of which more than 170 GWh will be in Europe. Half of this – 85 GWh – is to be covered by ACC. Either ACC will have to expand the factories in Douvrai, Kaiserslautern and Termoli or build further gigafactories.
 
 
VAUXHALL EV-ONLY BY 2028 AS STELLANTIS RAMPS UP ELECTRIFICATION
 
- The company – whose brands are Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Citroën, Dodge, DS, Fiat, Jeep, Lancia, Maserati, Opel, Peugeot, Ram and Vauxhall – has targeted low-emissions vehicles (LEV) accounting for more than 70% of its European sales and 40% of its US sales by 2030. The LEV term includes both electric cars and plug-in hybrids.
 
- Opel – including Vauxhall in the UK – will become an electric-only brand in Europe by the end of 2028 in both passenger cars and commercial vehicles. The firm will also expand into the Chinese market with a range of EVs. The German brand has also confirmed that it will revive the Manta name for a new EV. Opel has previously shown an electric restomod version of the Manta, but a teaser of this latest car shows it will be entirely unrelated, with the concept's low-slung retro silhouette making way for a high-riding and altogether more SUV-esque proposition.
 
- , Fiat will become electric-only by 2030, with the exact date determined by customer demand, and will launch a new dedicated EV in 2024. Its performance offshoot, Abarth, will also go electric-only.
 
- Stellantis has also released 'statements' for all 14 of its brands to reflect the electrification approach of each. Alfa Romeo's statement is "From 2024, Alfa Becomes Alfa e-Romeo", although the firm has yet to specify exactly what this means.
 
 
STELLANTIS INVESTS IN ITS FIRST ALL-EV PLANT
 
- The automaker plans to devote its factory in Ellesmere Port in the UK to electric LCVs (light commercial vehicles) and passenger EVs, with the plant slated to produce models under four brands: Opel, Vauxhall, Citroën, and Peugeot.
 
- The plant will receive a new body shop, an on-site battery-pack assembly facility, and an upgraded general assembly.
 
- When it comes to light commercial vehicles, the Ellesmere Port plant will produce battery-electric versions of the Opel and Vauxhall Combo-e and its passenger variant, as well as the Citroën e-Berlingo along with its passenger version, and the Peugeot e-Partner with its own passenger model.
 
 
THE STELLANTIS BRANDS HAVE NEW 'GREEN' SLOGANS AND THEY'RE PRETTY TERRIBLE
 
Abarth – “Heating Up People, But Not the Planet”        
Alfa Romeo – “From 2024, Alfa Becomes Alfa e-Romeo”
Chrysler – “Clean Technology for a New Generation of Families”
Citroën – “Citroën Electric: Well-Being for All!”
Dodge – “Tear Up the Streets… Not the Planet”
DS Automobiles – “The Art of Travel, Magnified”
Fiat – “It’s Only Green When It’s Green for All”
Jeep® – “Zero Emission Freedom”
Lancia – “The Most Elegant Way to Protect the Planet”
Maserati – “The Best in Performance Luxury, Electrified”
Opel/Vauxhall – “Green is the New Cool”
Peugeot – “Turning Sustainable Mobility into Quality Time”
Ram – “Built to Serve a Sustainable Planet”
Commercial Vehicles – “The Global Leader in e-Commercial Vehicles”
 
 
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If you had to buy one electric car today and it was the only car you were allowed to drive for the next three years, what would you choose? And why. I'll go first. VW ID.4 GTX
 
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