Automotive News Europe — 2026-02-06
Automotive Industry
Stellantis will take €22 billion ($26 billion) in charges after the automaker scaled down electric-vehicle development plans and “reset” its business.
As a result of the write-downs, Stellantis now sees a preliminary loss of €19 billion to €21 billion for the second half of 2025 and will not pay a dividend this year, it said Feb. 6.
Stellantis shares fell as much as 22 percent in Milan, wiping some €5.2 billion off the company’s market capitalization. The charges significantly exceeded analyst projections.
The company “has taken the vast majority of decisions required to correct direction, particularly related to aligning our product plans and portfolio with market demand,” Stellantis said in a statement.
CEO Antonio Filosa will present a new strategic plan on May 21. Filosa, who became CEO in June 2025, has been overhauling the 14-brand automaker to regain market share, while walking back EV ambitions and trying to mitigate the cost of U.S. tariffs.
The charges “largely reflect the cost of overestimating the pace of the energy transition,” Filosa said in a statement. They show “the impact of previous poor operational execution, the effects of which are being progressively addressed by our new team.”
Stellantis has eliminated some fully electric models including the RAM 1500 pickup in the U.S. while delaying Alfa Romeo EV projects in Europe.
Fabio Caldato, portfolio manager at AcomeA SGR, which owns Stellantis shares, told Reuters that higher-than-expected charges had become more likely after hefty impairments by General Motors and Ford Motor Co. in recent months.
“Further encouraging data is needed to restore full investor confidence in Stellantis, also because we are not seeing strong signs of recovery in the automotive semiconductor cycle, which could limit the group’s sales recovery potential,” he said.
Stellantis ends Canada battery JV with LG
Separately on Feb. 6, Stellantis said it was ending a joint venture with South Korean battery maker LG Energy Solution in Canada. In 2022, Stellantis said it would invest over $3.7 billion with LG Energy to establish the first large-scale EV battery manufacturing facility in Windsor, Ontario.
LG Energy Solution said it plans to buy the 49 percent stake held by Stellantis in the joint venture for a nominal amount of $100. More than $3.65 billion has been invested in the facility to date, LG said in a statement Feb.6.
Fourth-quarter global shipments were up 9 percent, Stellantis said Feb. 6, driven by growth in the U.S., notably for the Ram Hemi pickup and refreshed Jeep Grand Cherokee. Europe shipments fell 4 percent on declines at Peugeot and for commercial vans.
For 2026, Stellantis is projecting a low single-digit operating margin, which includes tariff-related expenses of around €1.6 billion. The company plans to issue as much as €5 billion in bonds to shore up its balance sheet.
Stellantis is fighting back from steep market share losses under previous CEO Carlos Tavares after buyers balked at model price increases, product gaps and quality problems. Tavares had pledged to sell only electric vehicles in Europe and 50 percent EVs in the U.S. by 2030.
As part of his overhaul, Filosa has said Stellantis will invest $13 billion in the U.S., a key profit engine, where the company has brought back V-8 engines and delayed EVs. Stellantis said Feb. 6 that it would hire an additional 2,000 engineers in the U.S.
Filosa also decided to scrap some investments, including a planned hydrogen joint venture and has been slashing prices to claw back market share.
Stellantis is due to report detailed full-year earnings on Feb. 26.
Stellantis follows Ford, GM in EV-related write-downs
The write-downs at Stellantis, which include a cash payment of about €6.5 billion, follow similar moves at Ford, GM and other automakers in response to the Trump administration’s policies and soft EV demand.
Ford in December said it would take $19.5 billion in charges tied to an overhaul of its EV business. Write-downs at GM have ballooned to $7.6 billion. Porsche is pivoting back to combustion engine and hybrid models, and is delaying or cancelling new EVs.