Stellantis closes Vauxhall van plant: Construction of midsize e-van discontinued
The British Opel sister company Vauxhall is closing its van plant in Luton near London. The move threatens 1,100 jobs. The parent company Stellantis announced that, in return, hundreds of jobs will be created at the Ellesmere Port plant and relocation packages will be offered to employees. The rationale given was to consolidate British production of light commercial vehicles. In Ellesmere Port, near Liverpool, a hub for fully electric, sustainable vehicles will be established. For this, 50 million pounds (60 million euros) are planned. In Luton, vans with petrol and diesel engines are being built. Production of a medium-sized electric van was scheduled to begin in 2025.
The company blamed British regulations for the move, which are intended to accelerate the transition to electric vehicles. Manufacturers are required to sell a certain percentage of zero-emission cars and vans - this year, it's 10 percent for van sales. Otherwise, hefty fines are imposed. Automakers are increasingly critical of this and are calling for more government incentives to boost demand. It is expected that Business Minister Jonathan Reynolds will soon relax the regulations under industry pressure. In addition to Vauxhall and Opel, Stellantis includes brands such as Citroën, Peugeot, and Fiat.
The German automotive industry also recently announced tough measures. For Volkswagen, in addition to cutting tens of thousands of jobs, closing several plants is now an option on the path to economic stability.
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