Stellantis NV will invest 3 billion rand ($160 million) to develop a new vehicle manufacturing facility in South Africa with the country’s Industrial Development Corp. and the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition.

Stellantis Announces Start of Electric Vehicle Production at Ellesmere Port

ELLESMERE PORT, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 7: In this handout image provided by Stellantis, a vehicle body is prepared as part of the manufacturing process at Stellantis' Ellesmere Port manufacturing plant as Ellesmere Port marks the start of electric vehicle production on September 7, 2023 in Ellesmere Port, England. (Photo by Handout/Stellantis via Getty Images)

By Bloomberg

13 Sep 2023

The owner of brands such as Alfa Romeo, Chrysler and Jeep first signed a memorandum of understanding with South Africa’s government in March. The project was finalized on Wednesday at a meeting attended by Stellantis Middle East and Africa Chief Operating Officer Samir Cherfan, Trade and Industry Minister Ebrahim Patel and IDC officials, the trade department said in a statement.

The factory will be built in a special economic zone near the ports of Ngqura and Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape province, where Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen AG, Ford Motor Co. have plants. The Stellantis facility is planned to be completed by the end of 2024 and could produce as many as 90,000 units a year, the department said.

Supported by government incentives, the automotive industry accounted for 4.9% of South Africa’s gross domestic product and 12.4% of exports last year, with manufacturers directly employing about 110,000 people, data from the Automotive Business Council show.

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