MILAN (Reuters) -Stellantis Chief Executive Carlos Tavares has resigned, the maker of Jeep, Fiat and Puegeot cars said on Sunday, adding it aimed to search out a recent head in the primary half of this 12 months.

Previously thought to be probably the most respected executives within the auto industry, Tavares got here under strong criticism earlier this 12 months after Stellantis issued a profit warning on its 2024 results, including a forecast for a money burn of as much as 10 billion euros, mostly blaming slow sales and bloating inventories in its key North American market.

“The Company’s Board of Directors, under the Chairmanship of John Elkann, accepted Carlos Tavares’ resignation today from his role as Chief Executive Officer with immediate effect,” Stellantis said in an announcement.

Stellantis said the method to appoint the brand new everlasting CEO was well under way, managed by a Special Committee of the Board.

The method can be concluded inside the first half of 2025, it said, adding that a recent Interim Executive Committee, chaired by Elkann, could be established.

Tavares was previously expected to retire at the tip of his mandate, in early 2026.

Tavares has led Stellantis, the world’s fourth largest carmaker by sales, since its creation in early 2021, through the merger of Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot owner PSA.

Stellantis’ top investor is the Fiat-founding Agnelli family through investment company EXOR. Elkann, the scion of the Agnelli family, can be CEO of Exor.

Stellantis shares have lost around 40% of their value this 12 months.

(Reporting by Giulio PiovaccariEditing by Peter Graff, Gianluca Semeraro)