Stellantis aims to give diesel vans an electric future

Stellantis plans to launch a retrofit package in 2024 to convert used versions of its midsize van range from diesel to electric, the company said.

The conversion kit aims to make electric vans more affordable for small business owners, Xavier Peugeot, head of Stellantis' vans business unit, told Automotive News Europe.

The retrofit would apply to the current generation of midsize vans code-named K0, which includes the Opel/Vauxhall Vivaro, Citroen Jumpy and Peugeot Expert.

The company has yet to reveal the price of the conversion package, but Peugeot indicated that it would be less than 20,000 euros.

"More and more smaller companies are looking for smart affordable solutions but aren't keen to invest in a brand new van," Peugeot said.

'Credible' range

Stellantis has not revealed technical details for the converted vans, but Peugeot said the electric range will be "credible," adding that it would be below that of the company's current full-electric vans, which offer ranges of 224 km (139 miles) and 350 km depending on the size of the battery.

Stellantis wants to convert the vans at its own manufacturing facilities, Peugeot said.

"We will bring them to our plant, make the switch and bring them back to the customer," he added.

The focus on electric van conversions has so far mainly focused on France, which offers incentives of up to 40 percent of the conversion cost to a maximum of 10,000 euros.

Anyone taking the incentives have to keep their converted van for more than a year or 6,000 km before selling.
 

Competitive market

Stellantis last year announced it had partnered with French retrofit company Qinomi to develop demonstration versions of converted vans, with the eventual aim of full commercialization.

Last year Renault announced it had partnered with French conversion specialist Phoenix to retrofit electric drivetrains into its range of Master large vans that are older than five years.

The vans would be sent back to Renault's so-called Refactory in Flins, near Paris, for the conversion, it said. Renault didn't immediately reply to a question on the current rollout timetable for the program.

Both Renault and Stellantis are looking to grow their circular economy business, partly by giving new life to second-hand vehicles. Stellantis said it planned generate 2 billion euros in revenue by 2030 from the circular economy, including recycling parts.

Meanwhile, Renault expects to generate 1 billion euros a year from such activities by 2030. The automaker plans to use the Flins plant for used-car reconditioning, parts refurbishment, retraining and "second-life" uses for EV batteries, as well as the conversion of diesel vans to electric.

Stellantis is Europe's biggest seller of electric vans, according to ANE's recent analysis of the sector based on figures from Dataforce.

Stellantis recently overhauled its van range, including the midsize models. By face-lifting the vans instead of moving them to a new platform, the company will be able to extend the life of an electric conversion program focused on the K0 midsize vans.