The owner of Fiat and Alfa Romeo flirts with Meloni: she promises that she will not close factories and a million-dollar investment

A complete swerve. The Stellantis automobile group, owner of brands such as Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Lancia, Peugeot, Citroën, Jeep, Chrysler and Dodge, has changed its strategy after the forced departure of its CEO in recent years, Carlos Tavares. His goodbye has left, at least for the moment, the control of the company in the hands of John Elkann, representative of the heir family of the founder of Fiat, the Agnelli, who also own Ferrari and constitute one of the families with the most business power. from Italy.

Since the beginning of December, Elkann has radically changed Stellantis’ approach and does not refuse political meetings. For example, a few days ago, he met with the president of Argentina, Javier Milei, during his visit to Italy.

Shortly before, the multinational confirmed that it is going to launch a battery gigafactory in Aragon. He is not doing it alone, because he is working hand in hand with the Chinese group CATL, in a project that will involve an investment of more than 4,000 million euros. The pace has also changed at the European level, because it has confirmed that it will once again be part of ACEA (the European Automobile Manufacturers Association), from which it left two years ago. Tavares considered that this employer’s association was not effective when it came to influencing the European Union in terms of the design of environmental policy, the demands for emission reductions and the veto on the sale of combustion vehicles from 2025.

However, the most obvious change is seen in Stellantis’s relationship with Italy and with the Government headed by Giorgia Meloni. For some time now, the Rome Executive has expressed its criticism of the automobile company, considering that it did not invest enough in the production of vehicles in that country and has preferred to take production to other markets, where labor and production costs are lower. .

Months of confrontations

This clash has been evident on several occasions. For example, last spring, the multinational announced a job cuts in Italy, where there are nearly 40,000 workers. In September, the Meloni Government decided to withdraw public financing from a Stellantis project that sought to install a battery factory, together with the German group Mercedes-Benz. The reason, the delays in launching this facility and that the consortium did not provide the Executive with a clear schedule regarding the development of the factory.

Months earlier, the automobile giant had to remove the Italian flag from the rear bumpers of one of its Fiat 600 models, manufactured in Poland, after protests in Rome, which considered that this tricolor flag could make buyers think that the Cars were manufactured in Italian territory. Something similar happened with the Alfa Romeo Milano, which had to change its ‘surname’ to Junior after complaints from the Minister of Business and ‘made in Italy’, Adolfo Urso, who assured that “a car called Milano cannot be produced in Poland. ”.

Meloni herself has been very critical of Stellantis’ previous strategy, considering that it has prioritized other European countries, such as France. It is worth remembering the shareholding structure of the automobile group, which has its headquarters in the Netherlands. Its first investor is the Exor company, controlled by the heirs of the Agneli family, which exceeds 15% of the capital. Behind is the Peugeot family, with 7%; and the French State, which has just over 6% through the firm Bpifrance Participations.

This structure is the result of the merger that, in 2019, gave rise to Stellantis. For Meloni, this integration “actually covered up a French acquisition of a historic Italian group.” “It is no coincidence that the group’s industrial decisions take more into account French demands than Italian ones,” the prime minister said months ago.

A commitment to Italy

Now those demands seem to be met. The multinational has confirmed this week that it is not among its plans to close any of the six plants it maintains in operation in Italy. On the contrary, they will have a guaranteed workload until 2032 and this will increase from 2026. In this way, it plans to reach 500,000 assembled vehicles in 2025 and increase progressively. Also for next year, an investment of 2,000 million euros is planned, focused on the transalpine market.

The workload will focus on a new generation of Fiat 500, which will be assembled in Mirafiori (Turin). Furthermore, in Pomigliano, near Naples, the new platform called STLA Small will be developed, focused on small electric vehicles, which would be operational from 2028. And Stellantis aims to expand local production of the Jeep Compass, the Lancia Gamma and the DS7, as well as hybrid models of the Alfa Romeo Giulia and Stelvio. A workload that does not affect the group’s factories in Spain. Stellantis has three factories here, in Madrid, Vigo and Zaragoza, which assemble for Citroën, Peugeot, Opel and Fiat.

The consequence of this commitment to production and investment is that, now, the Italian Government no longer takes a dim view of economic support for Stellantis’ plans. The Minister of Business, the aforementioned Adolfo Urso, assured, after meeting in Rome with representatives of the multinational and the unions, that they are considering a fund of 1.6 billion euros to support the automotive production chain in the country, which would benefit to Stellantis. Of that figure, close to 1 billion will be allocated throughout 2026.

“This is an important day for the Italian automobile industry and its workers,” said Urso in statements reported by the Italian press. “We had asked Stellantis to present us an industrial plan with significant investments, with production models and platforms, that could guarantee all Italian factories and their employment levels. And we have had the answers,” he indicated after that meeting. “I think this can mark a new beginning,” acknowledged the Minister of Business and ‘made in Italy’.