Stellantis achieved $9 billion in cost reductions from the merger

Tavares said the largest reduction was achieved in sharing and consolidating the company's vehicle engineering assets, followed by purchases.

Cutting costs has been mission critical for the veteran auto executive. Other cost-saving measures included restructuring the company's supply chain and operations, as well as reducing headcount.

“We're not looking for our way; we know where we're going,” Tavares said during the automaker's investor event at its North American headquarters, referring to automakers. 2030 “Bold Forward” Strategic plan.

Since the merger was approved in December 2019, Stellantis has reduced headcount by 15.5%, or approximately 47,500 employees, through 2023, according to public filings. Additional job cuts this year involving thousands of factory workers in the United States and Italy have angered unions in both countries.

Several Stellantis executives described the cuts to CNBC as difficult but effective. Others, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the potential repercussions, described it as overly stressful.

This is breaking news. Please check back for additional updates.