Dutch automotive group Stellantis NV, which owns 14 brands, including such well-known names as Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Citroën, Dodge, Fiat, Jeep, Lancia, Maserati, Opel and Peugeot, has announced a temporary halt to operations at its plants in France and Italy from the end of September and throughout October. The reason for the shutdown is a sharp decline in demand in these countries for a number of Stellantis models, including, for example, the Alfa Romeo Tonale and Opel Mokka compact crossovers.
After a meeting with local union representatives on 23 September, the Dutch carmaker’s management announced that it would halt production of the Tonale and Fiat Panda city hatchback at its plant in Pomigliano, near Naples, from September 29.
“These measures are aimed at rebalancing production capacity and real demand to avoid intermittent production,” Stellantis said in a statement. “We also want to optimise the plant’s production structure.”
The Dutch group also separately announced a three-week suspension of operations at its plant in Poissy, near Paris. The assembly lines in Poissy will be shut down from October 13 to 31 due to “major problems” in the European car market. This refers to a sharp decline in orders for the Opel Mokka and Citroën DS3 models assembled at the Stellantis plant in France.
As in Italy, workers in France have decided not to take holidays. Employment support plans have been developed for them, consisting of skills development and training programmes.
In April, large Stellantis plants in Canada and Mexico, which produce the Chrysler Pacifica with Dodge Charger Daytona and Jeep Compass with Wagoneer S, respectively, were also temporarily shut down.
Stellantis’ challenges in Europe
Along with its competitors, Stellantis faced the problem of excess production capacity in Europe, where it is being successfully squeezed out by lower prices from competitors from China, led by BYD Co. In addition to Europe, Stellantis also has major problems in its main market, the US, where Trump’s tariffs on its products have led to higher prices and a sharp decline in sales.
In 2024, when Donald Trump was still only planning to impose his tariffs on the entire planet, the Dutch carmaker announced with great fanfare its plans to expand production in the Apennines. These ambitious plans, as well as numerous other problems, now have to be dealt with by Stellantis’ new CEO, Antonio Filosa, who took up his post three months ago. Filosa, who is due to present a new business plan for the company’s development in the first quarter of 2026, recently publicly called on the EU to urgently provide assistance to the European automotive industry, which is going through very difficult times.
Meanwhile, Nicolas Dupont-Aignan, leader of the party Debout la France (France Arise), wrote on x:
“In less than 10 years, the ideology of a complete transition to electric vehicles has destroyed our French automotive industry. The latest victim: the Stellantis plant in Poissy has been shut down, and 2,000 employees are at risk. Brussels is sacrificing our jobs and our industrial independence. The mandatory transition to fully electric transport in 2035 must be cancelled immediately. The EU is killing us, let’s free ourselves!”
