Stellantis to build new Jeep Compass as fifth model in Melfi - sources

MILAN (Reuters) - Stellantis will build the new Jeep Compass, one of the carmaker's bestsellers in Europe, as the fifth model for its Melfi plant in southern Italy, two sources close to the matter told Reuters on Thursday.

The new model will be a development from the Compass SUV the Franco-Italian group currently produces in Melfi, one of its main assembly sites in the country.

Earlier this week Stellantis announced plans to introduce future production of a fifth unspecified model in Melfi, after CEO Carlos Tavares met Industry Minister Adolfo Urso to discuss a possible expansion of the group's output at its Italian facilities.

After the meeting Stellantis said the cars produced in Melfi would be "high-value premium models for foreign brands, plus an Italian one", all based on the new EV-centric STLA Medium platform, which the automaker presented last week.

The new Jeep Compass will join four other new models the carmaker had promised for Melfi but which it has not yet officially announced.

They are expected to be two models of the DS French premium brand, one of Germany's Opel and one of Italy's Lancia.

The group should officially disclose the future production line-up for Melfi at the end of this month, as part of a wider deal it is working on with Italy's government, one of the sources said.

The production of models in Melfi underpinned by the new Stellantis platform for medium-sized cars is expected to start during 2024.

Stellantis currently also builds Jeep's Renegade and Fiat's 500X models in Melfi.

The world's third largest carmaker by sales, which sold around 6 million vehicles last year, has plans to progressively move all its production on to just four platforms, STLA Small, Medium, Large and Frame.

(Reporting by Giulio Piovaccari; additional reporting by Gilles Guillaume in Paris; Editing by Keith Weir)