Stellantis, the mother company to Peugeot, is facing severe production setbacks on several of its electric vehicle models after one of its key battery factories failed to scale up output.
The crisis centers on Automotive Cells Company (ACC), the much-celebrated European venture from the group’s cooperation with Mercedes and Total. Cell production struggles have left Peugeot models stranded, and factory lines slowed.
At the heart of the disruption are the long-range batteries destined for Peugeot’s E-3008 and E-5008 models. Stellantis markets these models as game changers because they can achieve ranges of over 700 kilometers.
Far below objectives
According to sources close to the matter talking to Bloomberg, the delays now stretch up to eight months, the result of ACC’s inability to move beyond pilot-scale production at the new Douvrin plant in northern France. Instead of the thousands of battery packs required monthly, the plant has been churning out little more than 1,000 in total.
The ACC joint venture is supposed to be the flagbearer for a European battery renaissance, since Northvolt went bankrupt and was acquired by the American company Lyft.
Stellantis is not only the joint venture’s largest customer but also its primary stakeholder. Billions in public money have gone into subsidizing homegrown battery capacity under the guise of green sovereignty.
China to the rescue
ACC’s facility near Lille was launched in 2023 with government fanfare. Hailed as a ‘battery Airbus’ that would secure Europe’s auto future, the reality is far more sobering less than two years later.
High scrap rates (reaching 20% according to internal figures cited in Italian media) alongside soaring costs have left the operation wobbling.
Ironically, a task force of Chinese engineers has reportedly been brought in to stabilize production, even though the plant was built as a firm response to Chinese dominance in battery production. With manufacturing costs still up to 25% higher than those of Asian competitors, the company is now assessing cost-cutting measures.
ACC’s general secretary, Matthieu Hubert, acknowledged the steep learning curve to Bloomberg. Stellantis, however, has remained silent, declining to comment on the record.
CATL and LFP
The Italo-Franco-American group now finds itself looking elsewhere for more stable partners, including inking new deals with China’s CATL to produce cheaper LFP battery cells in Spain. The planned expansion of ACC facilities in Germany and Italy has been quietly paused.
The delays to its Peugeot line are already being felt in showrooms and logistics chains across the continent. Peugeot’s latest E-3008 was expected to spearhead the group’s push into the high-volume crossover segment.
Stellantis risks falling further behind in Europe’s fiercely competitive electric transition, as also the DS N°8 and Opel Grandland source their packs from ACC.
Selling its stake in the Canadian battery factory
The divergence also exposes the limits of Europe’s much-vaunted ‘green sovereignty’ doctrine. While ACC was promoted as a strategic pillar of European battery independence—backed by billions in public subsidies—the venture has struggled with yields, costs, and execution, forcing Stellantis to seek alternatives abroad.
In contrast, the group agreed this week to sell its 49% stake in Canada’s NextStar Energy to LG Energy Solution, effectively ceding control to a proven South Korean supplier in exchange for operational stability.
The Windsor facility has already attracted more than 5 billion Canadian dollars in investment and is ramping up under a single industrial lead, with Stellantis remaining a long-term customer rather than an operator.
The juxtaposition highlights an uncomfortable reality for Europe’s battery ambitions: sovereignty on paper has proven far harder to achieve than secure supply through global partnerships.
