Fiat has refuted recent reports that its revised business plan entails investment in the Melfi plant to build two new small SUV models. Italian papers Il Messaggero and Il Mattino recently reported that the upcoming business plan to be unveiled by company Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne would entail plans to build two new SUVs at the Melfi facility starting in 2014. The report had also claimed that the new business plan would see the Mirafiori plant in Turin remain in operation.
In response to the reports, Fiat has described them as “pure journalistic speculation and entirely without foundation.”
Fiat is expected to provide an updated business plan along with hits third-quarter results on 30 October. The updated plan will reflect adjustments in response to the dire market situation in Europe. In September, Fiat issued a statement saying that its investment plans need ongoing revision: “As such, it is unrealistic to expect that a project announced two and half years ago would remain unchanged. In fact, it is imperative that the product plan and related investment are constantly revised and aligned to prevailing market conditions.”
According to local unions, the plan should include an update on domestic investments that have been put on hold due to the economic slowdown. There has been much speculation that Fiat could close one or more of its manufacturing plants. Marchionne has so far responded to such concerns by reassurances that the OEM is committed to maintaining operations in Italy.
This is the second time this month that Fiat has had issues with Il Messaggero and Il Mattino. Earlier in October it issued a statement refuting reports by the publications that its financial reporting was under investigation by the stock market regulator Consob.
