Stellantis CEO, Carlos Tavares, Resigns

Amid wide speculations of his departure from Stellantis, the world’s third largest automaker, CEO, Carlos Tavares has resigned. The company confirmed in a statement that Tavares had indeed stepped down from his current role and that the Board had accepted his resignation. The statement from the company said, “The process to appoint the new permanent Chief Executive Officer is well underway, managed by a Special Committee of the Board, and will be concluded within the first half of 2025. Until then, a new Interim Executive Committee, chaired by John Elkann, will be established.”

Tavares’ 5-year contract was to end in 2026, but the company had already started looking for a replacement. Stellantis’ Senior Independent Director, Henri de Castries , was clear in his statement as to why Tavares stepped down,“Stellantis’ success since its creation has been rooted in a perfect alignment between the reference shareholders, the Board and the CEO. However, in recent week,s different views have emerged which have resulted in the Board and the CEO coming to today’s decision.”

Tavares was keen for Stellantis to enter to new markets and in fact, this vision led to the development of India as a export hub for the company, be it be for Jeep or Citroen. Both the brands have had their fair share of success in the country, but these were methods also to bring the costs of production down. While the individual brands might have done well, Stellantis’ growth has not been too great. In fact the company’s price share has tanked by nearly 40% since the start of 2024.