diff --git a/var/spack/repos/builtin/packages/elpa/package.py b/var/spack/repos/builtin/packages/elpa/package.py
index 3ef16ef4ecb..30061eb9eff 100644
--- a/var/spack/repos/builtin/packages/elpa/package.py
+++ b/var/spack/repos/builtin/packages/elpa/package.py
@@ -185,6 +185,8 @@ def configure_args(self):
 
         if "+autotune" in self.spec:
             options.append("--enable-autotune-redistribute-matrix")
+            # --enable-autotune-redistribute-matrix requires --enable-scalapack-tests as well
+            options.append("--enable-scalapack-tests")
 
         options.append("--disable-silent-rules")
         options.append("--without-threading-support-check-during-build")