12 minute read
STELLANTIS GOES GREEN
THE GORILLA IN THE ROOM
Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares presents his vision for tackling the costs of transitioning to an electric future
Carlos Tavares called the five-year pain of dealing with Stellantis’ transition the gorilla in the room last month, but unveiling the firm’s Dare Forward 2030 strategy to a global audience he had other, more immediate, worries on his mind.
“Our thoughts and prayers go to our 71 Ukranian colleagues, and their friends and families. Personally and on behalf of Stellantis, I would like to share my deep personal concern for the serious situation our colleagues are facing. At the moment, we cannot reach three of them, but we continue our outreach and support in what is a rapidly evolving situation.”
Confirming that the company which includes Peugeot, Fiat and Chrysler in its ranks will abide by and follow any sanctions that follow, he continued with the unveiling of Stellantis’ strategy, a bold strategic plan for the coming decade that it believes will drive its employees to be ‘second to none’in value creation for all stakeholders.
Stellantis has committed to becoming what it describes as the industry champion in the fight against climate change and has set a goal of reaching carbon net zero emissions by 2038.
“Dare Forward 2030 inspires us to become so much more than we’ve ever been. We are expanding our vision, breaking the limits and embracing a new mindset, one that seeks to transform all facets of mobility for the betterment of our families, communities and the societies in which we operate.
“Powered by our diversity, Stellantis leads the way the world moves by delivering innovative, clean, safe, and affordable mobility solutions.”
Dare Forward 2030 is an extension of the company’s long-term plan that it launched a year ago. Tavares said the ensuing
We are moving and we are moving fast”
FIGHTING THE GREEN FIGHT
Stellantis has unveiled what it describes as a bold strategic plan for the coming decade. It has spent the last 12 months formulating the Dare Forward 2030 programme and has led to it achieving net zero by 2038.
12 months have been among the “most intense in my 40-year career”. While the gears have been rapidly shifted throughout the operation, he also travelled to 12 different countries and 30 manufacturing sites.
“Connecting with colleagues, hearing their ideas and having meaningful exchanges about the future of Stellantis, I can testify to the extraordinary energy and enthusiasm around our company for building something truly unique,” he said. “I deeply treasure the privilege I have to serve Stellantis as the CEO, fully conscious of the value that we can bring to the society in which we operate. The word “we” is
very important, and one of the most important things we did in our first months together was to define our purpose. Our reason for existing.”
Stellantis wants to be the industry champion in climate change mitigation, becoming carbon net zero by 2038, with a 50% reduction by 2030. Taking a leadership role in decarbonisation, as well as a decisive step forward in the circular economy.
“We will lead the automotive industry and achieve carbon net zero by 2038 from well to wheel and throughout the entire supply chain. We know we can be part of the solution and we are ready to do our part in protecting humans from the negative effects we are already seeing from climate change,” he continued.
“This is our promise to society. Reaching the carbon net zero objective by 2038 is a daring challenge. A daring challenge, we are proud to lead”
As part of that leadership, Stellantis is setting course for 100% of sales in Europe and 50% of sales in the United States to be battery electric vehicles (BEVs) by the end of this decade. It also plans to have more than 75 BEVs and reach global annual BEV sales of five million vehicles by 2030 – including the newly revealed Ram 1500 BEV pickup.
“Today, we are thrilled to present the Jeep brand’s first-ever fully electric SUV launching in early 2023 and a new pickup truck arriving in 2024. Our journey is fuelled by a focus on innovation and engineering excellence that will put the latest technology into all our vehicles – from the most affordable to the high-performance and luxury – all offered through the extensive product portfolio of our incredible and unique house of brands.”
Stellantis has set out four main areas to focus on as sees out its progress through the decade: electrification, AI, autonomous driving and a fourth pillar to incubate the start-ups that will shape the auto-industry into the second half of the century via the Stellantis Venture Fund. Tackling the first, he says the group has targeted the right amount of investment on the right technology to reach the market at the right timing. In total over €30 billion will spent through 2025 on its four BEV-centric-platforms.
“STLA Small, Medium, Large and Frame are the backbone of this plan, all designed with a high level of flexibility and components sharing,” he says. “The platforms partner with our family of three electric drive modules that are compact, flexible and easily scalable.
“We are on track in performance and timing on both fronts and further, our battery ecosystem is well set with our electric powertrain joint venture with Nidec, our fast charging network rollout with Free2move e-solutions and our planned five gigafactories spanning North America and Europe that will, together with Samsung, LG, ACC and other sourcing contracts, contribute to our estimated needs of 400 gigawatt hour by 2030.”
He adds that this is an increase of 140 gigawatt hour from its initial plans: “With investments in factorial and ACC, we are also accelerating development of solid state batteries to give us more range, faster charging and lighter battery technologies.
And with Vulcan to secure a decarbonized supply of battery-grade lithium hydroxide.
“We are innovating, driving costs down and packaging the latest technologies in all our vehicles from the most affordable ones to the high performance offerings. We want to have a future where mobility is accessible to all,” he affirms. “The combination of the platforms, EDMs, high energy-density battery packs and charging networks deliver a best-in-class performance in efficiency, range and recharging.”
The Stellantis electric action plan goes beyond battery power and it is looking to be a front-runner in the hydrogen race.
“Our solution combines the advantages of hydrogen fuel cells and electric battery technology. Fuel cell electric vehicles are particularly suited to the needs of commercial vehicle customers requiring long range, fast refueling and zero emissions without compromising payload capacity,” he explains. “That’s why we were the first to launch a hydrogen van for last-mile delivery.”
Late last year, Stellantis delivered the first orders of its Citroën Jumpy, Peugeot Expert and Opel Vivaro mid-size vans to key fleet customers. Initial feedback is very positive, thanks to the three minute fast refueling for 400 kilometers of driving range, he claims.
“And we already have a good level of orders. In 2024 we plan to increase our mid van production capacity and extend our hydrogen offer to large vans in Europe. And in 2025, we will start extending our large van offer to US customers while further exploring opportunities for heavy duty trucks.”
In the realm of software and AI, Tavares describes the firm as working at full speed to get a fleet of 39 million connected vehicles with a regular over the year updates representing up to 400 million every year.
“This fleet of vehicles will generate €20 billion of revenue at 40% gross margins through five business pillars. Our strategy is to disconnect the hardware and the software cycles to create a product that can evolve regularly following customer needs. We will have three technology platforms deployed at scale: STLA SmartCockpit, STLA AutoDrive and STLA Brain across the four EV focused vehicle platforms.”
Stellantis also vertically integrating key elements of new electronics and software platforms, closely managing the complete electronic supply chain, including semiconductors, to ensure access to the best technologies and guarantee the fulfillment of its vast volume ambitions.
“STLA Brain will feature the most advanced systems on chip in cooperation with key technology partners, and we will complete our targeted vertical hardware and software integration for all products before 2030. Our co-operations with Amazon and Foxconn on STLA SmartCockpit will make our vehicles the most wanted, most captivating place to be using A.I. and advanced cloud solutions.
“We will also master the highest levels of autonomous driving technology and ensure our customers are confident the tech is safe and reliable. We are already offering among the best level 2 solutions. In 2024 with a STLA AutoDrive introduction will bring a handsfree highs of Level 3 solution with our partner BMW,” he says, adding the technology will be available in the LCV segment via its partnership with Waymo.
“We are preparing to solve the delivery as a service challenge and bring an autonomous solution for light commercial vehicles. Leveraging our exclusive partnership, Stellantis will deliver the first prototype vehicles for the project by the end of 2022. Our ambition is to make commercial use of this technology available in the second half of the decade.”
He adds that new incoming data from 34 million connected vehicles will lead to the creation of a new data business within the group. He predicts that almost half of its revenue can come from this new venture.
“We look at data in two ways. One to support our internal operations, especially the continuous improvement of our customers experience, and the development of AI-based features. And two, to support data as a service for external customers.”
Ending his brief of the Dare Forward 2030 strategy he explains that the Stellantis Corporate Venture Fund, with a initial fund of 300 million euros, will identify the best startup potentials beyond its traditional network. He adds that this will accelerate the “innovation potential in our company.”
He continues: “We are moving and we are moving fast to become a mobility tech company.”
Ultimately, Tavares believes that
100% ELECTRIC SALES BY THE END OF THE DECADE
Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares says the firm is ‘setting course’ for 100% of sales in Europe and 50% of sales in the United States to be battery electric vehicles (BEVs) by the end of this decade.
Fuel cell EVs are particularly suited to commercial vehicle customers”
CONSOLIDATING IN THE MIDDLE EAST
Stellantis’ Middle East and Africa shipments were up 6% in 2021, while market share grew in most major market’s yearon-year. The UAE saw a 41% increase across all brands from the same period last year, with Jeep increasing sales from 25% and PEUGEOT increasing by 70% respectfully. Saudi Arabia witnessed a 36% growth across all Stellantis products with PEUGEOT being the automaker’s highest performing brand with a 222% growth over the same period in 2021.
A NEW MEGAFACILITY FOR KSA
Stellantis Middle East has launched a new mega-facility for sales, servicing and spare parts (3S) housing seven major automobile brands underpinning high levels of convenience and a top-quality brand experience, in partnership with Petromin, a leading automotive services company in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Spanning 12,000m2, the stateof-the-art new facility in the Khurais Road automotive district will feature a dedicated 3S facility for Jeep brand including the unique Jeep Lounge concept combining social, F&B and showroom space as part of a community-driven approach to automotive retail. The complex will also include a multi-brand 3S space for Dodge, Chrysler, RAM, Fiat and Abarth, along with a standalone Alfa Romeo dealership boasting a premium showroom space in line with the luxury Italian brand.
The launch of the facility marks the latest development in the partnership between Stellantis and Petromin which will greatly increase the footprint of Stellantis brands throughout KSA, including the launch of the Abarth brand in KSA for the first time.
Speaking at the launch, Markus Leithe, group managing director for Stellantis Middle East, said: “At Stellantis, we are dedicated to elevating our brand portfolio in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia by establishing a world-class retail network featuring ‘industry first’ innovations through our ongoing partnership with Petromin. As Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh represents a key stage of these growth plans in the Kingdom, and the launch of these new facilities will provide the foundation for the introduction of an exceptional product offering from Stellantis in 2022.” technology will only take the group so far in its aspirations. People, including the customer, has to be at the heart of everything Stellantis is aiming to achieve.
“We aim to be No. 1 in customer satisfaction for our products and services in every market. We will pay exceptional attention to the full end-to-end experience, working to eliminate any friction throughout the value chain. We will lead the commercial vehicle market with the most efficient portfolio of products and services bringing exceptional solutions to our professional customers.
“We are making Stellantis an extraordinary place to work and a magnet for people with the drive to make customers’ lives better, unleashing our full potential for the digital and electrified future.
“We are adding more powerful engines to our strong global operations. Operational excellence, speed of execution and a breakeven point of less than 50% of shipments will remain our hallmarks. We will double our Net Revenues by 2030 and sustain double-digit Adjusted Operating Income margins throughout the decade.
“We are proud of our rich history. It shows our grit, perseverance and agility. To this we add the mindset of entrepreneurs to deliver Dare Forward 2030.”
STATE OF THE ART SECURITY
Alfa Romeo is the first automaker to link a car with an NFT digital certificate. The technology is based on the “blockchain card” concept, a confidential and non-modifiable record of the main stages in the life of an individual vehicle.
