Stellantis, a global group born in 2021 from the merger of PSA and Fiat Chrysler, is crowing in France. It is establishing itself as the leader of the French market, with 33% market share in 2022, i.e. approximately 621,000 registered vehicles. But it is above all in the market for electric vehicles (100% electric and plug-in hybrid) that the group is posting a good performance. This booming segment, still confidential ten years ago (less than 1% of registrations), has become the new Eldorado for manufacturers. It represented 11% of sales in 2021, and 16.5% last year. Stellantis monopolizes 29.3% of the market share there in 2022, with 101,613 registrations in 2022, and 10 points ahead of its second pursuer Renault.
The diamond brand was however in the lead on the electric, pioneer ten years ago, but now the Renault Zoé seems to have taken the dust, and does not even appear in the Top 5 of the best electric sales 2022. Consolation, Renault Group saves the honor with its Dacia Spring – the cheapest 100% electric on the market – on the second step of the podium, and its new Mégane E-Tech, in fourth position. The highly anticipated future electric R5, which is scheduled for release in 2024, should also “make it possible to come and challenge pole position again in the years to come”, insists an engineer from the brand.
The box of the Peugeot e-208
“Stellantis is the leader and Peugeot confirms its leadership”, doe for his part Guillaume Couzy, head of Stellantis France, highlighting “the dimension of electrification, absolutely major in our trajectory and our offensive”. For example, the group is dangling increased autonomy (around 400 km) for some of its models in 2023. And Carlos Tavares, the group’s general manager, should make announcements this Wednesday, during a key note (a main speech) at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Tech’s annual high mass in Las Vegas, USA.
Stellantis’ good performance on the French electric market in 2022 is mainly driven by the Peugeot e-208, which continues its excellent momentum, with an 8% increase in sales compared to 2021. As a reminder, the first step of the podium was occupied by the Tesla Model 3 in 2021, relegated to third place this year.
But the electric Fiat 500, “which innovates via a new subscription system, inspired by telephone packages, with billing formulas per kilometer”, underlines Sandrine Bouvier, electrical transformation manager at Stellantis, is also particularly attractive, in particular to an audience of forties.
In 2023, the craze for electric vehicles should increase further, linked to the deepening of the offer, with the arrival of new models, the improvement of the public charging infrastructure… and regulatory constraints “exclusive” such as the establishment of low emission zones (ZFE). The fight of the builders is therefore only beginning.