The United Automobile Workers union has been pressing the automaker, which owns Chrysler and Jeep, to revive the plant in Belvidere, Ill.
Automaker Stellantis plans to produce a new midsize pickup truck at the assembly plant near Rockford. The move will put about 1,500 UAW-represented employees back to work.
The news, announced in a letter to employees from North America Chief Operating Officer Antonio Filosa on Wednesday, also provided some good news to workers in Detroit, where the next generation Dodge Durango will be built and those in Toledo, Ohio, and Kokomo, Indiana, where investments are planned.
Automaker Stellantis plans to reopen an assembly plant in Illinois and build the next generation Dodge Durango in Detroit, the automaker said Wednesday. In an email to employees North America Chief Operating Officer Antonio Filosa confirmed that the plant in Belvidere,
Stellantis’ Belvidere, Illinois, plant has a new lease on life. According to the United Auto Workers, who pressured Stellantis to reopen the plant, the Chrysler manufacturer has recommitted to reopening the plant and building a new midsized truck there.
John Elkann, chairman of Jeep-maker Stellantis, wasted no time reassuring President Trump of the global automaker’s commitment to U.S. manufacturing. The scion of Italy’s famous Agnelli family met with Trump last week to emphasize the company’s support for American workers.
Among other agreements, Stellantis will reopen the Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois in 2027 to produce a new midsize truck.
Illinois’ two U.S. senators are celebrating a decision by Stellantis and the United Auto Workers’ union to invest in upgrading its U.S. auto plants. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth say that includes investing in the Belvidere Assembly plant.