More than a month ago, Stellantis decided to put its factory in Belvidere, Illinois, on “idle” but the United Auto Workers union said in a statement such a decision “will not stand.” Little else was known at the time but now it seems that there is some light at the end of the tunnel for the Belvidere factory after all. According to new reports, the plant is among the possible Stellantis locations for the production of the 2025 Ram 1500 Rev.
Automotive News summarizes reports from different publications and the conclusion seems to be that the Belvidere plant will be competing with Stellantis’ plant in Sterling Heights, Michigan, for the production of the electric truck. As a reminder, during the New York Auto Show earlier this week, the automaker confirmed it intends to build the 1500 Rev in the United States as “pickups are core to the US lifestyle.”
Automotive News cites “multiple, independent sources with first-hand knowledge” that Illinois badly wants to keep the Belvidere plant up and running and is putting a major push with daily talks between officials and Stellantis. It is believed that Illinois has one major advantage with the General Assembly approval from January this year, which gives the state around $400 million to lure automakers for the production of electric vehicles in the state.
Shortly after Ram unveiled the electric truck, speculation immediately turned to the automaker’s Detroit plant. However, there’s nothing official coming from Stellantis – not even small hints – which means a decision probably hasn’t been taken just yet. Separately, reports also suggest Illinois is competing with other states for another major EV production facility, though not much else is known at the moment.
As a final note, we will remind you that the Belvidere plant currently employs around 1,350 people and has been assembling the Jeep Cherokee for years. Earlier this year, Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares said the automaker was “looking for solutions” regarding the plant’s future and the Ram 1500 Rev could be a possible new addition to the assembly lines, which rolled off the last Cherokee several weeks ago.
