European carmaker Stellantis has launched a new facility in Detroit’s Motor City, for its Jeep Grand Cherokee line-up with a total capacity to produce 500,000 units between two plants. The company will also lead Italy’s plans for expanding EV battery production.
Stellantis’ Mack Assembly unit in Detroit is estimated to bring nearly 5,000 new jobs to the city of which 2,100 have already been hired to operate in the $1.6bn, 3 million sq ft complex.
Stellantis began producing the L SUV models in March after completing the plant’s construction during the pandemic, according to media reports on Friday. The carmaker will disclose further plans for the USA plants in the near term.
Meanwhile, in Europe, the Italian government plans to infuse Stellantis’ domestic lithium-ion battery manufacturing with an investment of over €1bn ($1.22bn). Media reports on Jun 11 hinted that Stellantis may be one of the lead investors in the development and operations of a 37GWh gigafactory that aims to employ 500 people by 2030. The company already has active EV battery units in France and Germany.