Cars: Volkswagen CEO says there are smarter solutions than closing factories
Last week, the company, based in Wolfsburg, Germany, announced that its “fundamental restructuring” over the past three years had entered the next phase, unveiling plans to streamline its model range by reducing it by up to half
Volkswagen’s chief executive Oliver Blume has said that he is trying to avoid plant closures in an effort to turn the carmaker’s results around. “There are smarter solutions than closing plants,” Blume told the newspaper Bild am Sonntag. He added that a cost-cutting programme in Germany is already bearing fruit.
“Last year alone, we managed to reduce our production costs in Germany by an average of 20 per cent,” he emphasised, describing this result as “significant progress”. Blume argued that Volkswagen products are very popular, but “we simply don’t make enough profit on them. We must therefore continue to reduce our costs. Across all cost categories.”
Last week, the company, based in Wolfsburg, Germany, announced that its “fundamental restructuring” over the past three years had entered the next phase, unveiling plans to streamline its model range by reducing it by up to half. Media reports had revealed that Volkswagen was also planning to close four plants in Germany between 2031 and 2034.
