European automaker Stellantis has warned that the auto industry is doomed to collapse if electric cars don’t get cheaper, following EU member states backed a phase-out of gasoline-powered vehicles by 2035.
Stellantis Chief Manufacturing Officer Arnaud Deboeuf said on Wednesday (29th): “If electric vehicles cannot become cheaper, the market will collapse, which is a big challenge.” Stellantis is striving to reduce the cost of electric vehicle manufacturing by 40% by 2030.
Stellantis plans to manufacture some of the parts itself and ask suppliers to reduce prices.
With the EU aggressively pushing the auto industry to move away from fossil fuels, most manufacturers are likely to have to switch to electric vehicles within a decade.
While Stellantis will comply with the EU decision, Chief Executive Carlos Tavares said on Wednesday that EU policymakers did not appear to be concerned regarding whether carmakers had enough raw materials to support the shift.
Greater demand for batteries for electric vehicles between 2024 and 2027 means battery production in the West will be “at risk”, but Asian battery makers will benefit, Tavares said.
Stellantis is currently building five large battery factories in North America and Europe, with the goal of producing 400 GWh of batteries by 2030. Tavares said buying the mines was not ruled out to ensure the supply of raw materials.
Today, the price of electric vehicles is rising rapidly. Electric car maker Tesla (TSLA-US) This month not only raised the price of all models in the US market, but also raised the price of the Model Y long-range version in the Chinese marketRMB 19,000 yuan.
The last time Tesla raised its price sharply was in March. The price increase for all models in North America ranged from $1,000 to $5,000. Tesla also raised the price in the Chinese market three times within a week. The domestic Model Y long-range version was priced at the beginning of the year. forRMB 347,900 yuan. After two increases, it was raised to 357,900 yuan and 375,900 yuan respectively.
