Volkswagen recently confirmed that it would shutter at least three factories in its home country of Germany as part of its aggressive cost-cutting measures. We’re now learning about the closure of another of VW’s facilities in Brussels, Belgium, where it builds Audi EVs.
The automaker said it would close the Brussels factory in late February next year and list it for sale, which will impact the production of vehicles like the Audi Q8 E-Tron. At the same time, it noted that it’s pursuing investments from at least 26 entities, but none have taken the bait so far.
Volkswagen’s German plants employ around 300,000 people, but the Belgian facility only houses 3,000. Regardless of the human impact, the automaker’s move to shutter factories in Germany is the first time such a decision has been made. It said closing the German factories would reduce headcount by tens of thousands of employees, and the company has confirmed that it would cut pay for the remaining workers.
Workers in Belgium haven’t taken the news lying down, with a significant number of them taking to the streets in protest. Spokespeople for the local union said that VW and other automakers’ problems are not related to buyers’ demand for new EVs and suggested that the real issue relates to VW’s decision to sell high-end electric models – like the Audi Q8 E-Tron – that people can’t afford.
[Images: Audi]
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