Volkswagen is preparing to suspend production across Europe as the continent struggles to contain the coronavirus pandemic, EDNews reports citing CNN.
The German carmaking giant said Tuesday that production at its plants in Spain, Setubal in Portugal and Bratislava in Slovakia will be halted before the end of the week. Factories in Italy that make Lamborghini super cars and Ducati motorcycles will also be idled. Most of the group's other German and European plants are preparing to suspend production, probably for two weeks, Volkswagen (VLKAF) CEO Herbert Diess told reporters on Tuesday.
"Given the present significant deterioration in the sales situation and the heightened uncertainty regarding parts supplies to our plants, production is to be suspended in the near future at factories operated by group brands," said Diess. The company said factories producing Volkswagen branded cars would shut down starting late on Thursday.
That includes the company's huge plant at Wolfsburg, one of the biggest manufacturing sites in the world. Volkswagen, which also owns brands including Skoda, Audi, Porsche and Bugatti, delivered 10.8 million vehicles to customers in 2019, more than any other carmaker. Roughly 44% of the group's 668,000 employees live in Germany, where the company is a leading force in the country's huge manufacturing sector.
It joins other automakers in Europe in closing plants as a result of the coronavirus. Fiat Chrysler (FCAU), Peugeot owner PSA Group (PUGOY) and Renault (RNLSY) on Monday announced the closure of 35 manufacturing facilities in total across Europe as regional and national authorities imposed severe restrictions on travel and public life. Together, the three companies sold roughly 12 million cars last year.
Toyota (TM), the world's second biggest carmaker after Volkswagen, said Tuesday it was halting operations at two plants in France and Portugal. BMW (BMWYY) said Wednesday that it was preparing to shut plants in Rosslyn, South Africa and Europe until April 19, while Daimler (DMLRY) said it would suspend most production of Mercedes vehicles in Europe for two weeks initially.
