Stellantis Announces $26.5bn EV Charge and Strategy Shift

Stellantis reported a $26.5bn EV writedown as it scales back electric vehicle plans, citing slower demand. CEO Antonio Filosa explained the shift.

Stellantis has announced a sweeping retreat from its electric vehicle ambitions, booking charges of around $26.5bn (€22.2bn) as the automaker acknowledges it misjudged both the pace of the energy transition and the strength of mass-market demand.

The charges will be recorded in the company’s results for H2 2025, marking one of the most severe financial resets seen so far among the Detroit Three. Stellantis now expects a preliminary net loss of €19bn–€21bn for the second half of the year and said it will not pay dividends.

Investors reacted sharply. Stellantis shares listed in Milan fell by around 19% in early trading following the announcement.

Chief Executive Antonio Filosa said the charges largely reflect the cost of “over-estimating the pace of the energy transition,” arguing that the company’s assumptions had drifted away from what many buyers could realistically afford or wanted. He also pointed to the impact of previous weak operational execution, which he said is now being addressed by a new management team.

The adjustment is particularly focused on the US market. Stellantis said nearly €15bn of the total relates to reshaping its product development plans in response to shifting customer expectations and a softer regulatory environment. The shift has already led to the cancellation of several EV projects, including the fully electric Ram 1500, once presented as a flagship step in the brand’s electrification push.

The scale of the cash impact is also significant. Stellantis expects around €6.5bn in payments, spread over the next four years. To reinforce its balance sheet, the company plans to issue up to €5bn in bonds.

In parallel, Stellantis is reducing its exposure to EV-related investments. On 5 February, the group agreed to sell its 49% stake in its Canadian battery joint venture NextStar to partner LG Energy Solution in a deal valued at about €700m.

Stellantis is the last of the Detroit Three to announce major EV writedowns. Ford previously reported a charge of about $19.5bn, while General Motors has also recorded multi-billion-dollar EV-related costs tied to asset impairments and the cancellation of supplier contracts.

Beyond the headline figures, Stellantis’ announcement underlines how quickly automakers are being forced to rewrite electrification strategies as policy, incentives and consumer demand shift. The key question now is whether this pivot away from aggressive EV targets can stabilise profitability without leaving the company vulnerable in a market that is still expected to evolve rapidly.

Stellantis is set to present its new business plan in May 2026, saying it has already taken most of the decisions needed to correct its direction. Yet the sheer size of the charges suggests that the road back will be neither quick nor cheap.