Stellantis Seeks to Exit Battery Venture With Samsung as EV Losses Mount

The plant, Samsung’s only U.S. battery factory, started production in 2024, has since shifted to making cells for energy storage

By Gabrielle Coppola and Albertina Torsoli

Stellantis NV is looking to exit its United States battery joint venture with South Korea’s Samsung SDI Co. as the automaker unwinds electric-vehicle bets and tries to preserve cash after announcing more than €22 billion (US$26 billion) in writedowns last week.

The owner of the Jeep and Ram brands has been exploring ways to divest from the venture, but no final decision has been made and the situation could change, according to people familiar with the discussions who asked not to be identified commenting on sensitive matters. An exit could be costly for Stellantis and a lengthy process, some of the people said. Stellantis could sell its stake to a third party, one of the people said.

“We continue to have ongoing collaborative discussions with Samsung on the future of our StarPlus Energy JV,” Stellantis said in an emailed statement. U.S.-based representatives for Samsung didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Stellantis chief executive Antonio Filosa is working to stem losses on EV and battery projects that were destined to be money-losers following President Donald Trump’s moves that undermine plug-in cars. Last week, Stellantis said it would exit a separate JV with partner LG Energy Solution Ltd. in Windsor, Canada. In that transaction, LG bought out Stellantis’ stake for just US$100, and the automaker still plans to buy EV batteries from the factory.

“The exit from the LG JV in Canada was a surprise and leaves us wondering what the future is for the Indiana JV with Samsung SDI,” HSBC analyst Michael Tyndall wrote in a Feb. 6 note to clients.

In Europe, the Stellantis-backed EV battery joint venture Automotive Cells Co. on Saturday confirmed it will halt plans to build battery factories in Germany and Italy and said it is holding talks with unions at its French venture on possible temporary unemployment measures due to ramp-up problems in battery manufacturing.

Filosa’s electric pullback means Stellantis will need fewer battery factories in the U.S. and Europe than initially expected, Bloomberg reported earlier this month.

Stellantis, General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co. and their partners have been reassessing billions of dollars in battery investments made during the Biden era after EV demand failed to materialize as quickly as anticipated and Trump rolled back his predecessor’s EV-friendly policies. The companies have been looking to shift production from EV batteries to cells for grid and data centre use, which are seeing increased demand.

Stellantis and Samsung formed their Indiana JV in 2021. They pledged to invest US$2.5 billion and create 1,400 new jobs in the city of Kokomo, which already is home to Stellantis’ engine and transmission plants. The plant, Samsung’s only U.S. battery factory, started production in 2024, and has already shifted to making some cells for energy storage. Samsung has recently secured several new customers to buy stationary storage cells, one of the people said.

Bloomberg.com

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