The cost of electrification transformation is too high. Stellantis laid off hundreds of people and closed a Jeep plant indefinitely.

CTOnews.com, Dec. 11 (Xinhua)-- multinational carmaker Stellantis will close a factory in Illinois indefinitely in February and lay off hundreds of workers, mainly because of the high cost of making electric cars, the company said.

In a statement emailed to Fox Business on Friday, Stellantis said the industry had been adversely affected by factors including the epidemic, global chip shortages and increased costs associated with electrification in the car market, which the company said was the last factor.

Stellantis said it had taken a number of actions to stabilize production and improve efficiency at its North American plant. However, while considering other ways to optimize operations, Stellantis said it had decided to close its Belvidell plant in Illinois, which produces Jeep Grand Cherokee models, from February 28, 2023.

In addition, Stellantis's move will lead to indefinite layoffs, which are expected to take more than six months, and the company said it would make every effort to place employees who were laid off indefinitely into full-time positions with vacancies.

CTOnews.com has learned that by 2025, Stellantis will invest more than 30 billion euros to electrify its car series. The company also said it expected electric vehicles to account for 100 per cent of its sales in Europe and 50 per cent in the US by 2030.