Stellantis CEO Calls Out EVs, Again

The man has a point.

Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares has a tendency to say things much of the media, both automotive and mainstream, really don’t like. That was true yet again as Tavares spoke during the recent Freedom of Mobility Forum, where he yet again cast doubt on the viability of the industry-wide push toward electrification.

Learn why Ram’s electric truck commercial is actually pretty cynical here.

“The affordability is not there because the raw materials are scarce and very expensive, and I would add very volatile,” Tavares shot off, angering diehard EV enthusiasts. Then he went on to highlight the scarcity of lithium, as well as other minerals needed to build electric cars for everyone, saying the pursuit “may create other geopolitical issues.”

Tavares is, of course, right. For years, we in the auto industry and increasingly consumers have been told making plenty of EVs would be easy since they’re such simple machines. We were also told repeatedly that getting off oil would cease so many wars, as if war was created after oil became important globally. Instead, the scarcity of materials needed to build batteries could put us in an even worse position.