Stellantis to close van manufacturing plant in Luton, UK
The Luton plant was supposed to produce the fully electric Vauxhall Vivaro Electric, Opel Vivaro Electric, Peugeot E-Expert, Citroën ë-Dispatch and Fiat Professional E-Scudo in both right and left-hand drive. The plant will be closed by Q2, 2025.
According to media reports from the UK, Stellantis is about to close its own van manufacturing plant in Luton, UK, by the end of Q2, 2025. The plant, located near Luton airport, as been widely used by Stellantis to produce ICE medium-sized vans of all the brands belonging to the group (Fiat, Opel, Citroen, Peugeot).
However, last year Stellantis announced the will to start production of electric vans in Luton in 2025. More into details, the Luton plant was supposed to produce the fully electric Vauxhall Vivaro Electric, Opel Vivaro Electric, Peugeot E-Expert, Citroën ë-Dispatch and Fiat Professional E-Scudo in both right and left-hand drive.
The destiny of the Stellantis Luton plant
As reported by BBC, in November Stellantis started threatening to move e-van production from Luton to a different plant in the UK, located in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire. Now, it’s been made clear that this is the possible scenario, with the start of e-van production in Ellesmere Port foreseen in 2026, when all the equipments will be moved from Luton. Also, according to UK-based media, “several hundred” jobs will be relocated in Chechire, although not all 1,100 workers that will lose their job in Luton.
The BBC reported that Labour leader of Luton Council, Hazel Simmons, described the decision made by Stellantis as a “devastating blow to Luton and the livelihood of the workers“.
