Flop Marelli? Stellantis’ fault. Word of Marelli
Marelli freezes the closure of Crevalcore but for the survival of the site a new player must emerge, meanwhile the company accuses Stellantis of preferring the French supply chain (in particular Forvia) to that of Fiat
«In crisis because Stellantis prefers France to Italy». This time the unions are not saying it, Carlo Calenda is not saying it (who just a few days ago, from the gates of the plant at risk, attacked: "If the supply models change and they go towards French suppliers, you can block Kkr, but the you have the same crisis. If you have a million machines produced in France by Stellantis and 400,000 in Italy, do you do something?"), the Corriere della sera doesn't write this (which, as we will see, is highlighting all the disparities between the our country and its French-speaking cousins in the industrial plans written by Carlos Tavares ) and Repubblica certainly does not give an account of it . It is the company itself that puts in black and white that Marelli, once owned by FCA, is forced to close due to the car giant's new center of gravity, increasingly leaning beyond the Alps.
STELLANTIS PREFERS FRANCE AND MARELLI SUFFERS
The dissatisfaction of the American fund KKR emerges from the sentence pronounced in front of the Minister of Made in Italy Adolfo Urso to explicitly bring Stellantis into play, from which in 2018 it acquired the Marelli group for around 6 billion euros (with a capital gain of 1 billion immediately distributed to the shareholders, i.e. to the Agnelli – Elkann). The accusation that Marelli's management makes against the car giant born after the merger with PSA is in fact that it has chosen "to work on ex-Peugeot and not ex-Fiat platforms".
Not exactly new, at least for those who have been following the dispute for some time. The same complaint had so far been made by workers' representatives. It is unprecedented, however, that this was said by the management of Magneti Marelli, whose turnover has always been linked first to Fiat, then to FCA and then to the Stellantis group, which in the accounts accounts for 49% of orders.
But if Stellantis prefers France and, to save money, intends to shorten supply chains, Italy is at risk of the industrial desertification feared by many. And the latest balance sheet of Magneti Marelli Europe with its losses of 465.5 million euros would, say the company, in part be proof or at least a warning of what we risk.
THE POINT ON THE MARELLI OF CREVALCORE
And it is there that the crisis originates at Magneti Marelli in Crevalcore (Bologna) where die-cast aluminum and intake manifolds are produced, components for internal combustion engines but not for those of electric cars.
The theme is that if Stellantis, committed to the ecological transition, looks to other suppliers in other countries when redesigning its supply chain, many factories here in Italy risk no longer having a future. Hence the communication of September 19th with which the owners announced their intention to close the plant, with the dismissal of 230 workers.
WHO TOOK MARELLI'S PLACE?
Some observers maintain that, after the merger with PSA, the new reality favored Peugeot's historic suppliers, including the French Faurecia, now known as Forvia following the merger with the German Hella. It is the seventh group in the world in the components sector, with a turnover of over 25 billion, 150,000 employees in more than 40 countries.
MARELLI OF CREVALCORE IS OPEN BUT NOT SAVED
What is certain is that after a three-hour summit at the Ministry of Economic Development, the closure of the Marelli site in Crevalcore seems to have been foiled for the moment, although all the unknowns about the production future of the Bolognese plant remain on the table. Without a new player it will be difficult for American ownership to endorse an industrial plan that takes into account the ongoing energy and ecological transition.
THE POSITION OF THE UNIONS
And if Minister Urso flaunts confidence ("Today's meeting outlines a future for the Marelli plant in Crevalcore and its 229 employees. Our priority has always been to support and relaunch production in the sector and in the supply chain 'automotive, and we are convinced that this will pass from accompaniment towards a full reindustrialization of this historic production reality, pride of Made in Italy"), the unions have a completely different opinion and are agitating, attacking the government: "We are the only Country that does not have an automotive industrial plan. We do not have extraordinary resources to dedicate to the sector and this is why we are here because the Crevalcore affair is paradigmatic of the future of the car: this is why we continue to say that there is a need for a table on the automotive but also for public resources that must serve to safeguard employment in the factories", the thrust of the Fiom leader, Michele De Palma before the meeting.
"How this dispute is handled will mean managing all the disputes that gradually arise", the dark warning of the CISL leader, Roberto Benaglia . “We have been saying for three years that we need a plan to support the ecological transition, today the workers are paying for it. If companies and unions are left alone we will end up discussing shock absorbers and instead the government must implement what it has promised for some time and has not yet done: a support plan for the automotive transition”.
And Benaglia is not wrong: Fiat had contributed to the creation of dozens and dozens of SMEs throughout Italy which are tied, for their survival, to supply contracts that Stellantis might not renew, given its multinational nature. Therefore, disputes of this type could actually multiply in the coming period.
STELLANTIS' ESCAPE FROM ITALY ACCORDING TO THE COURIER
In short, the situation is complex and the responsibility could be equally divided between several parties but Marelli could also be right when at the table with the government he said that the closure of Crevalcore would be due "to Stellantis' choice to work on ex-Peugeot and not ex-Fiat platforms ”
In Via Solferino, for example, they have no doubts about Stellantis' escape from Italy. Even in the last few days, the Corriere wrote: "Until 2022, production was comparable between the Italian and French plants: both had suffered from a lack of materials, but currently 13 vehicles are planned between 2024 and 2026, at the sites of the country , compared to the 24 that will be produced in the factories beyond the Alps, which appear to be more competitive for the development and readaptation of the entire supply chain".
In short, if it were a sporting competition, which usually sparks love of patriotism in public opinion and politics more than industrial issues, France would beat Italy 24 to 13.
“Moreover – continues the Corriere – in 2024, the difference could be 11 models higher, in favor of France. Identical situation for the components which see the involvement of a single Italian site – Mirafiori – where parts for electric and hybrid vehicles are assembled, compared to the five French ones. For the future, 3 out of 6 in Italy and 6 out of 6 in France are optioned. The process of reconverting the plants is much more advanced beyond Mont Blanc – they beat us 5 to 1 – and naturally involves all the research activity which sees 1,239 patents in France, compared to the 166 deposited in our Chambers of Commerce".
If fewer and fewer cars are produced in Italy, not only will we be destined to exit the automotive sector, historically dominated by our country with some of the most loved brands globally, but we also risk seeing that undergrowth of medium-sized businesses swept away. -small, sometimes family-run, sometimes also open to the foreign market, which germinated in the post-war period around Fiat.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/smartcity/flop-marelli-colpa-di-stellantis-parola-di-marelli/ on Wed, 04 Oct 2023 13:51:40 +0000.