Stellantis and Samsung SDI join forces to build EV battery plant

Still relentlessly committed to electrification, Stellantis announces a partnership with Samsung SDI to manufacture battery cells in North America. The joint venture will begin operations in 2025 and will serve Stellantis' various automotive plants.

Stellantis, the parent company of Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep, announced on Friday that it is forming a joint venture with Samsung SDI, the Korean giant's battery division, to manufacture battery cells in North America pending regulatory approval.

It will be in 2025 when it starts working

This alliance is expected to bear fruit from 2025 when the first plant is launched. The location of this facility has not been determined, but it is expected that the annual capacity will be 23 gigawatt-hours per year, but depending on demand, this can be increased to 40 GWh. By comparison, the Tesla Gigafactory in Nevada is reported to have a capacity of around 35 GWh per year.

Ultimately, the battery plants will supply Stellantis' plants in the US, Canada and Mexico with the electron reservoirs needed to build a wide range of next-generation vehicles. This includes pure electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids, passenger cars, crossovers and trucks, which will be sold by many of the automaker's brands. 

A sure step towards electrification

This is an important step for Stellantis towards its goal of having 40% of its sales electrified in the US by 2030, but the company will face stiff competition from almost everyone else in the business. Ford, for example, announced a major expansion of its battery plant last month.

Stellantis spoke about its electrification strategy in July during the EV Day presentation. The multinational automaker is developing four independent full battery electric vehicle platforms: STLA Small, STLA Medium, STLA Large and STLA Frame. These architectures will support a wide range of vehicles, from compact cars to luxury models and pickup trucks. Stellantis is also looking to invest around $35,000 billion by 2025 in electric vehicles and software. Friday's announcement of a joint venture underpins those efforts.

“Our strategy of working with valued partners increases the speed and flexibility needed to design and build safe, affordable and sustainable vehicles that meet our customers' exact requirements. I am grateful to all the teams working on this important investment in our common future,” said Carlos Tavares, CEO of Stellantis, in a press release. “With the launch of the next battery factories, we will be well positioned to compete and ultimately win in the North American EV market.” 

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