The site of La Ferté-Vidame, the site of the wonderful meeting of the century in 2019 and the historic heritage of Citroën, where the Stellantis Group develops its future vehicles with Belchamp, is a unique site steeped in history. However, this 800-hectare site will no longer belong to Stellantis, as the group has decided to put it up for sale by the end of 2024.
In a simple email to the community of the Perche forests, the Stellantis group announced its intention to dispose of the historic La Ferté-Vidame test centre and put it up for sale at the end of 2024. Surrounded by 12 kilometres of walls to prevent future vehicles from being seen, the centre of La Ferté-Vidame is the largest private property in France not crossed by a public road, with a vast area of 800 hectares dedicated to the development of point vehicles.
Above all, it is a historical site of Citroën heritage, since it is here that the great myths of the brand were created, it is also where the 2CV prototypes were hidden during the Second World War, then forgotten and found decades later, these three prototypes, in their original state, can also be seen in the brand's conservatory. Owned for a long time by Citroën and then by PSA, the Ferté-Vidame site was no longer run directly by Stellantis but by Ségula, which was responsible for the operation of future vehicles, even if the manufacturer remained the owner of the walls. The Stellantis group has not renewed Ségula's delegation, which expires at the end of 2024, and has confirmed its intention to sell the La Ferté-Vidame site after ensuring that the 25 employees present on the site will be offered retraining within the group. .
It is a hard blow for the village of 530 inhabitants, which benefited from the activity generated by the test centre to support its dealers, but it is also a hard blow for Citroën, which loses an important site in its history with the sale of La Ferté-Vidame. The département, which owns land adjacent to the Stellantis site, is awaiting official confirmation from the group of the sale of the site, but does not intend to remain without reaction, as Christophe Le Dorven, president of the Eure-et-Loir département council, explains: "The département is in any case the owner of the land adjacent to the château. Nor will it allow anything to happen. The département, with the state, can be there as a partner. I would like to see the site transformed into a museum on the history of Citroën, for example".
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