What to expect from Stellantis in 2021

The world’s newest automotive group, Stellantis, will start life with a war chest of $21.2 billion in cash, but without a published strategic plan as to how it will manage 14 brands across three continents and 400,000 employees – and find about $6 billion a year in annual synergies.

CEO Carlos Tavares told analysts this week that they would have to wait until the end of this year or the beginning of 2021 for a capital markets day. That plan, when it comes, will extend out to 2030, far longer than most strategic plans and much longer than the two four-year plans that he put in place at PSA Group.

Stellantis is in no rush, Tavares said at a presentation of results from PSA and new partner Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, evoking an earlier merger that ended in a bitter separation. “We do not forget what happened in the past with DaimlerChrysler,” he said. 

“Stellantis is not born from a crisis,” Tavares said, but “from the understanding that the two former companies will be stronger together than on a standing-alone basis.” 

“Therefore, it is important that we do the right things in a proper way to create this sound foundation,” he added. 

In the meantime, he said, the current business plans for PSA and FCA will remain in place.