Stellantis revealed its plans to produce new electric drive modules (EDMs) at three Kokomo, Indiana, plants on Tuesday to boost production of its Jeep and Ram EVs and support its overall goal of 50% BEV sales in the US by 2030.
Stellantis producing new EDMs for Ram, Jeep EVs
The automaker is investing $155 million to produce the new EDMs, which Stellantis says will improve performance and range at a competitive cost.
The EDM offers an all-in-one solution for the automaker’s electric powertrains, consisting of the electric motor, power electronics, and transmission.
Stellantis says the EDM will be integrated into vehicles on the STLA Large and STLA Frame platforms, two of the company’s four EV-centric vehicle architectures offering driving ranges between 500 to 800 kilometers (300 to 500 miles) as well as front, rear, and AWD propulsion.
After claiming the number one spot for commercial EV sales and number two in overall EV sales, Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares says the automaker has the “technology, the products, the raw materials, and full battery ecosystem” to accelerate its US EV rollout. Tavares said at the release:
While we continue our successful transition to a decarbonized future in our European operations, we are now setting those same foundational elements for the North American market.
The company’s leader added the new EDM, combined with Stellantis’s BEV platforms, will “offer customers a variety of electric vehicles” with improved performance at an affordable price range.
The first EV to debut will be the Ram Promaster BEV, set to be unveiled in the first half of this year.
Rams commercial EV van will be followed by the automaker’s first electric truck, the Ram 1500 REV. After that, Jeep, another Stellantis brand, is set to reveal its electric Recon and Wagoneer S models, which will be opened for reservations in the US later this year.
Stellantis currently operates five powertrain plants in Indiana, including three transmission plants, a casting plant, and an engine plant. The company says that, with the investment, it will retain 265 jobs across the plants in Kokomo receiving the upgrades.
Mark Stewart, Stellantis North America COO, said at the release:
The city of Kokomo and the state of Indiana have been great partners for many years. This community will continue to play a central role in our efforts to provide safe, clean and affordable mobility solutions for our customers long into the future.
The investment is part of the company’s Dare Forward 2030 strategy unveiled last March to achieve carbon net zero by 2038 and bring 25 all-new EVs to the US.
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