German carmaker Volkswagen AG is considering closing European plants and moving production outside the European Union (EU) if gas supply difficulties persist. This was reported by Bloomberg, citing Gen Wu, the head of the company’s public procurement department.

As medium-term alternatives to EU assembly, we will focus on greater localization of production, redeployment of capacity, finding technical alternatives similar to solutions used to overcome the effects of semiconductor shortages and other recent supply chain disruptions.” he said.

The company plans to implement these measures if gas supply problems continue “for an extended period of time beyond next winter,” the agency said.

In this case, “Volkswagen’s major plants in Germany, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, as well as the company’s energy infrastructure in southern Europe” would be at risk of closure.

source: bgnes

German carmaker Volkswagen will stop selling cars powered by internal combustion engines (ICE) in Europe by 2035. By then, the company should have switched entirely to electric vehicles in the Old Continent, and later in the United States and China, according to Reuters.

In Europe, we will leave the business of internal combustion vehicles between 2033 and 2035, in the United States and China – a little later, “said Klaus Zelmer, a member of the Board of Volkswagen, to Muenchner Merkur. “It will take much longer in South America and Africa due to the fact that the political and infrastructural framework conditions are still lacking.”

By 2050 at the latest, Volkswagen’s entire fleet must be carbon-neutral, Zelmer said.

In Europe, the company aims for electric cars to account for 70% of total sales by 2030. This will prepare the company for a possible tightening of the European Union’s climate targets and will even exceed them.

EU politicians have reduced exhaust emissions, forcing carmakers to stimulate the development of low-emission technology. Otherwise, they face sanctions if they exceed carbon dioxide emission limits.