Stellantis: Belvidere assembly plant to reopen in 2027 despite tariff policy change

BELVIDERE, Ill. (WTVO) — Stellantis says it is still on track to reopen the Belvidere Assembly Plant in 2027, despite shifting policies on auto tariffs from the White House.

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump will sign an executive order to relax some of the 25% tariffs on autos and auto parts, a reversal designed to ease the strain on domestic automakers.

“We just wanted to help them during this little transition, short term,” Trump told reporters. “We didn’t want to penalize them.”

The goal of the tariffs are part of an effort to bring more production to the United States, said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

“President Trump has had meetings with both domestic and foreign auto producers, and he’s committed to bringing back auto production to the U.S.,” Bessent said. “So we want to give the automakers a path to do that, quickly, efficiently and create as many jobs as possible.”

The administration will offer automakers that finish their vehicles domestically a 15% rebate this year, offsetting the cost of the tariffs. That rebate would be 10% the second year, giving the automakers some time to relocate production of parts outside the country to the United States, a senior Commerce Department official said on a call with reporters to preview the executive order. The rebates would be available to domestic and foreign companies with auto plants in the U.S.

Stellantis chairman John Elkann joined the CEOs of General Motors and Ford in praising the move, saying, “We look forward to our continued collaboration with the US administration to strengthen a competitive American auto industry and stimulate exports.”

Last week, a Stellantis spokesperson told The Chicago Sun-Times, “The launch timing for the [Belvidere] plant has not changed. We’ll honor the timing indicated in the 2023 Collective Bargaining Agreement, so still expecting to launch in 2027.”

The company announced the reopening of the Belvidere Assembly Plant in January.

It is expected to bring 1,500 union members back to work to build a new, midsize truck.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.