Stellantis to build second U.S. electric vehicle battery plant

DETROIT (AP) — Stellantis says it will build a second U.S. electric vehicle battery factory in a joint venture with Samsung.

The automaker didn’t disclose the location, but said July 24 that it signed a memorandum of understanding with Samsung SDI under its existing joint venture called StarPlus Energy.

The new plant will open in early 2027, joining a joint-venture facility in Kokomo, Indiana, that’s already under construction and scheduled to start production in early 2025.

CEO Carlos Tavares said in a prepared statement that the second plant will help the company offer at least 25 new battery-electric vehicles in North America by the end of the decade.

Stellantis is planning for half its U.S. passenger car and light truck sales to be battery electric by 2030. The company wants 100% of its sales in Europe to be electric in the same time frame.

No financial details of the new venture were released.

The Kokomo plant, about 60 miles north of Indianapolis, will employ up to 1,400 workers and cost about $2.5 billion.

Earlier, the company also announced a $4.1 billion battery plant in Windsor, Ontario, that would employ about 2,500 people. It’s a joint venture with LG Energy Solution.

Stellantis was formed in 2021 through a merger of Fiat Chrysler and France’s PSA Peugeot.