Stellantis Says Its Still On Track To Reopen Belvidere Assembly

Despite all the chaos surrounding the auto industry lately—tariff battles, production pauses, temporary layoffs—Stellantis says it’s still full speed ahead on reopening its Belvidere Assembly Plant in 2027.

That’s straight from the company, which told the Chicago Sun-Times this week that nothing has changed regarding the timeline agreed upon in last year’s UAW contract.

“The launch timing for the plant has not changed,” said Stellantis spokesperson Jodi Tinson. “We’ll honor the timing indicated in the 2023 [UAW] Collective Bargaining Agreement, so still expecting to launch in 2027.”

The Belvidere plant in Illinois hasn’t been active since February 2023, when production of the last-gen Jeep Cherokee (KL) stopped and over 1,300 workers were laid off. But during labor negotiations last year, Stellantis committed to bringing the plant back—and with it, about 1,500 jobs.

A lot has happened since then. In April, former President Donald Trump threw a wrench into things by announcing steep new tariffs: 25% on imported vehicles and another 25% on certain car parts, effective May 3. That move has had ripple effects all across North America.

Stellantis had to temporarily pause production at the Windsor Assembly Plant in Ontario and its facility in Toluca, Mexico. They also laid off around 900 workers across five U.S. plants. The good news? Windsor is back up and running on two shifts, bringing some folks back to work in the U.S.

“More than half of the employees from Sterling Stamping, Indiana Transmission, Kokomo Transmission, and Kokomo Casting who were put on temporary layoff when production was paused… will return to work to support the Windsor operations,” Tinson added.

Toluca, however, remains down until at least the end of this week.

Despite all this disruption, Stellantis isn’t backing away from Belvidere. If anything, the pressure might be motivating them. UAW Local 1268 President Matt Frantzen thinks the tariff situation may actually be lighting a fire under the company.

“They’re moving in the direction that seems to be consistent with what they agreed to, as far as putting a product there,” Frantzen said. “There’s been no major overhaul or anything started yet, but we have no reason to believe that it’s not going to happen.”

And while Stellantis hasn’t said if the tariffs might lead to more U.S.-based production, Frantzen is hopeful. “That may be what we need in the automotive industry to start getting some of these products back in the country and create more jobs,” he added.

In July, the U.S. Department of Energy provided $335 million in federal funding to support the reopening of the Belvidere facility. This is in addition to Stellantis’ nearly $5 billion investment agreed to during UAW talks. Whether that money is still safe under Trump’s new economic direction remains to be seen.

Even with the economic headwinds, Stellantis Chairman John Elkann sounded optimistic during the company’s February earnings call. “We have full confidence at Stellantis that what is ahead is probably among the most exciting periods for our industries,” Elkann said, comparing the current challenges to the early days of the auto industry.

So for now, Stellantis is holding the line on Belvidere. Tariffs might be shifting the landscape, but the company seems locked into its promise. And if everything goes according to plan, the plant will be up and running again in 2027—with thousands of American workers back on the floor.

Source: Chicago Sun-Times