In just a week Stellantis has announced a second joint venture for lithium-ion battery production in North America. The latest memorandum of understanding is with Samsung SDI, which is specifically for the production of battery cells and modules. This will add another gigafactory to a whole network that Stellantis plans to build with its partners.
“With the forthcoming battery plants coming online, we will be well-positioned to compete and ultimately win in the North American electric vehicle market,” said Carlos Tavares, CEO of Stellantis. “Our strategy to work with highly recognized partners boosts the speed and agility needed to design and build safe, affordable, and sustainable vehicles that match exactly what our customers demand. I am thankful to all the teams working on this critical investment in our collective future.”
The facility that Stellantis will operate with Samsung SDI is scheduled to come online in 2025. Its initial capacity will be 23 GWh but it will eventually grow to 40 GWh later in the future. “With this battery joint venture, we will do our best to meet the high standards of our customers in the North American EV market leveraging Samsung SDI’s battery technology, high-quality, products and safety measures,” said Young-hun Jun, President, and CEO of Samsung SDI.
Stellantis says that it is now ahead in the process of securing annual production capacity for its upcoming battery-electric vehicles. This will help meet its goal of making electrified vehicles comprise 40 percent of its annual sales by 2030. The battery plants will be supplying assembly facilities across the United States, Canada, and Mexico. They’ll be used for plug-in hybrids and battery electric vehicles, many of which are about to enter the lineup of multiple brands under the Stellantis umbrella.
By 2025, Stellantis will invest €30 billion ($34.8 billion) in electrification and software development. It is also making sure that it remains 30 percent more efficient than the industry with respect to its total Capex and research and development spending versus revenues. The location of the new facility will be announced at a later time and the joint venture is still subject to final agreements, documentation, and regulatory approvals.
This latest announcement follows Stellantis’ recent announcement with LG Energy Solutions. The battery production plant resulting from that joint venture will also have the ability to grow up to 40 GWh of capacity. However, it will start production in 2024, one year ahead of the facility that Stellantis will operate alongside Samsung SDI. Stellantis and LG Energy Solutions are expected to hold the groundbreaking of their plant in late 2022 but the location hasn’t been finalized yet. LG Energy Solutions was Stellantis’ main battery supplier for the Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid when it was still known as Fiat Chrysler Automobiles.
During its EV Day back in June, Stellantis committed to electrification with five new platforms specifically built for EVs. By 2024, Dodge and Ram will debut their first all-electric vehicle respectively, a muscle car and the 1500 EV, the latter of which is aimed directly at the Ford F-150 Lightning. Jeep will introduce its first EV a year after Dodge’s electric muscle car and the Ram 1500 EV arrive. Next year, the Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe joins the Wrangler 4xe while Dodge and Alfa Romeo will get their first plug-in hybrid vehicles. By 2027, Alfa Romeo will sell only EVs.
