Stellantis ready to 'fight' for place in Europe's EV market, CEO says
- Stellantis says that it is ready to take on strong Chinese competitors to establish its place in the European electric vehicle market as the group presented its EV production line in Serbia.
Stellantis is ready to "fight" for its place in Europe's electric vehicle market against strong competition from Chinese carmakers, its CEO Carlos Tavares said on Monday, as the group presented its new EV production line in Serbia.
"We are going to be challenged and I would say brutally challenged by the Chinese offensive on the European market," Tavares said on Monday. "At Stellantis we are ready for the fight."
Also check these Cars
50.8 kWh
400 km
"We are going to demonstrate to them that... we are hard working, we are going to demonstrate to them that we have the right technology, we are going to demonstrate to them that we are a very fierce competitor," he said.
Also Read : LG slows EV cell plant with General Motors in US as political worries swirl
Serbia, which is pushing to become a key European supplier of more sustainable row materials, batteries and electric vehicles, signed a 190 million euro ($206.9 million) deal with Stellantis in 2022 for the production of an electric vehicle at its car manufacturing plant in Kragujevac.
The plant is seen as a generator of growth for the entire region.
"This is a huge opportunity for us. We are the only country in the Western Balkan region that has electric (car) production," Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said at a ceremony to present the new production line.
As part of its drive towards more sustainable economy, Serbia has reinstated a licence for Rio Tinto to develop Europe's biggest lithium mine in a potential boost to the continent's electric vehicle industry. It is eyeing annual lithium output of 58,000 tonnes, enough for about 1.1 million electric vehicles or about 17 per cent of the European market.
Also Read : Stellantis plans for hybrid expansion to meet growing demand
On Friday Serbia signed a deal with the European Union to give the bloc access to raw materials mined in Serbia and strengthen their ties on sustainable raw materials production, battery manufacturing and EVs.
The CEO of Germany's Mercedes-Benz, Ola Kaellenius, said on Friday his company is a potential customer of lithium from Serbia and would support bringing more of the battery value chain to Serbia.
($1 = 0.9185 euros)
Check out Upcoming EV Cars in India.
Editor's Pick
Trending this Week
