Breaking news folks! The dynamic duo of Stellantis, the French-Italian automaking powerhouse, and South Korea’s battery manufacturing titan, Samsung SDI, are shaking things up. These big players have recently dropped the bombshell that they’re gearing up to open a second U.S. based battery plant. This high-powered joint venture is geared toward crafting electric vehicle batteries, with production slated to kick off in 2027.
Of course, there’s still a bit of paperwork to clear before the ink dries on this deal. The location of the new plant is still up in the air, with several potential sites under the microscope. As for the nitty-gritty details, like the amount of investment and the number of jobs this venture will generate, well, we’ll just have to hold our horses until further announcements are made. But what we do know is that this plant is set to hit the ground running, with an eye-popping initial production capacity of a whopping 34 gigawatt hours (GWh).
Stellantis CEO, Carlos Tavares, is chomping at the bit, saying, “This new facility will play a pivotal role in helping us achieve our ambitious target to unleash at least 25 new battery electric vehicles for the North American market by the end of this decade.”
Stellantis, which is a household name thanks to brands like Peugeot, Jeep, Ram, Alfa Romeo, Citroen, and Opel, has gone on record with bold plans to transform its European passenger car sales to 100% electric and achieve a 50% electric mix for U.S. cars and light trucks by 2030. They’ve certainly got their work cut out for them, needing a colossal 400 GWh of battery capacity to make this happen.
In 2021, Stellantis showed they weren’t just blowing hot air by committing to pump a staggering $35 billion into global EV production and software until 2025. This new battery plant in the U.S., which would be their sixth, is a giant leap towards achieving their lofty goals.
Samsung SDI CEO Yoon-ho Choi, shared the excitement, stating that “The second plant will supercharge our foray into the U.S. market.”
Last year in May, these companies had already made waves by announcing a whopping $2.5 billion investment to set up their first joint battery plant, planned to open its doors in Kokomo, Indiana, in the first quarter of 2025. The planned initial capacity for this plant is 23 GWh, with plans to ramp it up to 33 GWh.
In addition to these ambitious ventures, Stellantis has been busy elsewhere too, partnering with South Korea’s LG Energy Solution to build another joint-venture battery plant in Windsor, Ontario, in Canada, which is set to open in 2024. This plant alone is expected to generate a staggering 2,500 jobs and will boast an annual production capacity exceeding 45 GWh.
The big news has sparked a noticeable uptick in Samsung SDI’s shares, which saw a significant 4.1% boost following Monday’s announcement, overshadowing a modest 0.8% increase in the benchmark KOSPI.
All in all, the future looks bright for these two titans, with their sights firmly set on leading the charge in the electric vehicle revolution. We can’t wait to see what’s next on the horizon!
