In December, he was fired from his job as director of Stellantis. Now Carlos Tavares is lashing out at his former employer, which he believes is lagging behind China.
Carlos Tavares, who was fired as director of Stellantis in December, is now warning about China's dominance in the electric car market. In a new interview with Portuguese news channel Expresso, he expresses concern that China is far ahead in the development of electric vehicles.
Tavares believes that this has forced European car brands into a fight for survival. He emphasizes that European car manufacturers face fierce competition, where only the strongest survive.
However, the former CEO does not regret the decision that ultimately led to his dismissal. He acknowledges that his vision for Stellantis was not in line with that of the rest of the board.
– A company that has 250,000 employees spread across 15 car brands cannot be managed without one common direction, Carlos Tavares tells Expresso .
Tavares left his position in early December after disagreements over future strategy. He believes China is "many years" ahead in the development of electric cars.
According to Tavares, the political decisions made by European leaders have led to a dead end, further worsening the situation for European car manufacturers.
Carlos Tavares has previously faced criticism from the American Stellantis National Dealer Council, a group that represents dealers of Stellantis coach vehicles in the United States.
They claim that Tavares has made short-term decisions to increase profits at the expense of the long-term health of Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles, the American part of Stellantis.
The firing of Tavares marks a shift in Stellantis' strategy. It will be interesting to see how the new management will handle the challenges that Tavares has pointed out.
In particular, China's dominance in the electric car market and the future of European car manufacturers in an increasingly competitive industry will be crucial to Stellantis' success.
