Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic speaks during an interview with Reuters in Belgrade, Serbia, September 28, 2023. REUTERS/Zorana Jevtic/File Photo
BELGRADE (Reuters) - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Sunday he expects automaker Stellantis to produce an electric Fiat Panda city car in the central town Kragujevac.
Vucic who spoke after meeting Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni did not give any specific date for the production launch.
Vucic said that the production of electric Panda would boost trade between Italy and Serbia above the current 4.6 billion euros a year.
The current generation of the Fiat Panda is built near Naples in Italy, and the new model is expected around mid-2024.
Stellantis, created in 2021 through the merger of France's PSA and Fiat Chrysler, and the Serbian government in 2022 signed a 190 million euro deal to produce electric vehicles in the Kragujevac plant which previously produced the Fiat 500L model.
(Reporting by Ivana Sekularac; Additional reporting by Alvise Armellini; Editing by Alison Williams)