MILAN -- Italy's industry minister, Adolfo Urso, criticized Stellantis for producing Alfa Romeo's first full-electric vehicle abroad, saying the automaker's decision violated Italian law.
Stellantis-owned Alfa Romeo, a brand steeped in Italian automotive history, unveiled on Wednesday its new Milano small SUV, named after the iconic northern Italian city of Milan, where Alfa Romeo was founded in 1910.
The Milano is being built at Stellantis's Tychy plant in Poland along the Jeep Avenger and Fiat 600 sibling models. It is the first Alfa Romeo to be entirely produced outside Italy.
"A car called Milano cannot be produced in Poland. This is forbidden by Italian law," Urso said in Turin, referring to 2003 legislation that targets "Italian sounding" products that falsely claim to be Italian.
"This law stipulates that you cannot give indications that mislead consumers. So a car called Milano must be produced in Italy. Otherwise, it gives a misleading indication which is not allowed under Italian law," Urso said on Thursday.
Stellantis declined to comment.
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Urso's complaint is the latest in a war of words between Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's nationalist government and the Franco-Italian automaker, as the two sides hold talks on a plan to boost domestic auto production to one million units.
The law mentioned by Urso says it is illegal to present a foreign-made product as coming from Italy. Typically, it has been invoked against food products, for example U.S.-made "parmesan" cheese resembling Italy's "parmigiano."
Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares told Automotive News Europe and Italian reporters at the Milano's launch in Milan on Wednesday that producing the SUV in Poland rather than Italy will cut 10,000 euros off its retail price, which starts at under 30,000 euros ($32,136.00) for its cheaper hybrid version.
So far, the Milano is the only Alfa Romeo model set for production outside Italy. Tavares confirmed that the next-generation Stelvio midsize SUV, due in 2025, and Giulia midsize sedan, due in 2026, will continue to be built in Cassino, central Italy.
Stellantis will invest more than €100 million there to install European production for its new STLA Large platform.
