Stellantis Reportedly Plans More Than €1 Billion for French Van

Stellantis plans to invest more than €1 billion, or about $1.16 billion, in France to build a new van, Bloomberg reported on September 11. The reported project centers on the automaker’s Hordain plant in northern France.

The plan would upgrade the factory and fund research and development elsewhere in France, according to Bloomberg, which cited people familiar with the matter. Stellantis has not publicly detailed the reported van, spending schedule or production start date.

The Hordain site already builds light commercial vehicles for several brands, including Peugeot, Citroën, Opel and Fiat Professional. Stellantis said in 2022 that the plant was producing about 620 vehicles a day at the time.

The reported changes would bring some manufacturing steps now handled by suppliers back inside the plant. More automation is also expected, which could help the company improve efficiency, Bloomberg reported.

The investment would fit a wider effort to reshape Stellantis’ European factory network under its FaSTLAne 2030 plan. Announced in May, the five-year strategy targets €6 billion in annual cost savings by 2028 and 80% factory capacity use in Europe by 2030, up from 60%.

This reported van project is separate from a confirmed investment at Stellantis’ Mulhouse plant. The company announced more than €1 billion there in June for three new Peugeot electric and hybrid models, with production planned from 2029.

For investors, the Hordain report points to spending aimed at both a new product and lower production costs. The next details to watch are confirmation from Stellantis, a timeline for the van and how the changes affect suppliers and factory operations.