Automotive stalled between Fund cuts and falling volumes, wait for Mirafiori

In total, a 4.6 billion euro cut on a total budget of 8.7 billion. That leaves 1.2 billion - 200 thousand a year from 2025 to 2027, then 600 thousand from 2008 - net of the incentive plan still available for certain types of cars. The automotive accounts do not add up after the alarm raised by Anfia (companies in the automotive supply chain) on the reduction to the Automotive Fund written by the government within the financial manoeuvre. And concern remains high even after the words of Minister Adolfo Urso, who tries to reassure an industrial sector in crisis, between declining volumes and a 'jammed' transition to electric cars.

The sector's players denounce the risks for one of the main Italian industrial sectors, with over 270,000 direct employees and a turnover of over 100 billion euros, grappling with an epoch-making technological transformation and a stalled market, in Italy and in Europe. And they denounce the 'betrayal' of the work done at the Stellantis Table with Mimit in recent months. "The cut envisaged by the Draft Budget Law to the already scarce resources allocated in 2020 is an unacceptable thunderbolt that blatantly contradicts the important work that the government is doing in Europe in favour of the sector to improve regulation, and cancels months of intense work by the Automotive Development Table, which led Anfia, social partners and regions to propose an action plan to the government to support the supply chain," explains the association led by Roberto Vavassori.

There are many outstanding issues. Starting with the summons of Carlos Tavares, CEO of Stellantis, to Mimit, announced by Urso himself after the ceo's hearing in Parliament, but not yet fixed. The trade unions, which took to the streets on 18 October in support of the sector, raise their sights and once again demand that the dossier go directly to Palazzo Chigi. "We reiterate the urgency of an official convocation by the Presidency of the Council, with the participation of the secretariats of Fim, Fiom, Uilm, the top management of Stellantis and the component companies, so that we can discuss together the necessary measures to safeguard the Italian automotive industry and its workers."

The point is that in Italy the car market is suffering - in September registrations dropped by 10.7% and the balance of the first nine months saw the increase compared to 2023, +2.1% - and the industry is suffering even more. Stellantis production in Italy, according to the Fim Cisl report, has lost 30% of volumes between cars and commercial vehicles compared to last year, 40% if we look only at passenger cars. Istat data updated in August show production in the Italian automotive industry as a whole down 29.3% compared to August 2023, -18.2% in the first eight months of the year.

All the Group's car plants in Italy are suffering, with thousands of workers laid off or on solidarity contracts. On Monday 4 November, the Mirafiori car plants are scheduled to reopen and the resumption of production of the Fiat 500 bev (full electric), which has slipped month by month after the summer break. Groups of workers have returned in the last few days to do maintenance on the plants and prepare for the return to production. Although the workers' representatives are waiting for official communications from the company.