INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess this week announced plans to suspend production at European factories over COVID-19 fears
The news will impact a number of prominent makes under the umbrella of the world largest car maker (by sales).
Plants in Spain, Portugal and
Italy will be suspended before the end of this week, with VW native Germany and other European countries getting ready to follow suit
Production suspension is expect to last two or three weeks, per Reuters
Of course, these numbers are always subject to flux, depending on how the remainder of the pandemic plays out
Given the present significant deterioration in the sales situation and the heightened uncertainty regarding parts supplies to our plants,&
Diess said, &production is to be suspended in the near future at factories operated by Group brands.
A number of automakers have run into
major supply issues, as China was the first country to be hit by the outbreak
In many cases, however, production has begun to ramp back up, as authorities in the country had taken dramatic actions to stem the spread of
As of earlier this week, some 31 of the 33 VW factories are up and running in the country
Production continues at many United States plants, though executives are monitoring the situation and looking to adjust production
Other automakers, including Fiat Chrysler, PSA Group and Renault, announced the shutdown of European plants earlier this week
In addition to issues of employee health and safety, travel restrictions have made it untenable for many factories to continue production
