A view shows the ACC logo at the gigafactory of Automotive Cells Company (ACC), a joint venture of Stellantis, TotalEnergies and Mercedes, in Billy-Berclau-Douvrin, northern France, May 30, 2023. REUTERS
ROME, Feb 7 (Reuters) – The Stellantis-backed Automotive Cells Company (ACC) told unions it had shelved plans to build gigafactories in both Italy and Germany, the Italian metalworkers’ union UILM said in a statement on Saturday.
ACC, a battery joint venture in which Stellantis is the largest investor, had plans for three gigafactories in Europe — in France, Germany and Italy.
However, UILM said ACC management had informed them that the planned projects for Termoli, in Italy, and Kaiserslautern, in Germany, had been “definitively shelved”.
ACC said in a subsequent statement on Saturday that the projects in Germany and Italy had been on standby since May 2024 and added that the “prerequisites” to restart them were not expected to be met.
“While different scenarios are being assessed, we have begun constructive dialogue with works council representatives in Germany and with unions in Italy to work on … any possible discontinuation of the Kaiserslautern and Termoli gigafactory projects,” it said.
Stellantis shares plunged 25.2% on Friday, their biggest single-day drop on record, after the Franco-Italian company booked charges of around 22.2 billion euros ($26.5 billion) as it scaled down electric-vehicle development plans.
ACC, which is owned by Stellantis, Mercedes-Benz and TotalEnergies has started production at a plant in France, but put on hold the Italian and German projects amid lacklustre demand for electric vehicles.
UILM said Stellantis had previously outlined plans for the production of gearboxes and engines at Termoli but had not provided operational details.
“The failure to build the ACC gigafactory must in fact be offset by clear and coherent industrial decisions,” UILM said.
Reporting by Crispian Balmer and Giulio Piovaccari; Editing by Aidan Lewis
