Automotive News Europe — 2025-04-01
Automotive Industry
Stellantis’s strategy to make more hybrids is causing manufacturing delays in Europe because the automaker cannot source enough parts.
The automaker produced 20,000 fewer vehicles than expected in March because it did not have enough hybrid parts and the right kind of tires, according to Stellantis’s Europe chief, Jean-Philippe Imparato.
One issue is that the European Union recently changed rules for carbon emission targets, making sourcing more difficult with the company typically buying parts three months in advance, Imparato said March 31 at a French senate hearing on government aid for businesses.
Stellantis said in October that there were production bottlenecks for electrified dual-clutch or eDCT transmissions used in its new 48-volt hybrid powertrain.
Stellantis has been rolling back an all-electric strategy following the departure of CEO Carlos Tavares and weak car sales in Europe. The group, which is still looking for a new CEO, said earlier this year it would pool with Tesla and other automakers to buy carbon credits that can help it meet the stricter EU emissions rules.
“EVs did not work, so we pushed full speed on hybrids,” Imparato said. “Only that in two months, small, medium size and large suppliers do not know how to adapt.”
Stellantis risks EU penalties of about €1.7 billion ($1.84 billion) a year because low demand for EVs is likely to cause it to miss emission targets, Imparato said.
“Two years of this would kill the company,” he said.
The European Commission said last month that the bloc would grant automakers a three-year window in which to hit carbon dioxide emissions targets that were originally set for this year. This is not enough, according to Imparato.
“They presented this as a gift, the possibility of doing an average between 2025, 2026 and 2027,” he said. “But if I do not make those EV sales in 2025, I will have to make up for them in 2026. There is no market for EVs right now.”
Stellantis sold about 5.5 million vehicles last year, including roughly 2.6 million in Europe, and generated sales of €156.9 billion.