Decision imminent on future of €2bn VW Trinity factory

The Volkswagen Group committee met contiguous to determine if it volition physique a caller mill for its Trinity flagship, German commercialized paper Handelsblatt has reported.

Autocar Business antecedently reported that Trinity has been delayed by 2 years, pursuing a wide-reaching reappraisal of the VW Group’s merchandise roadmap.

Speaking to Autocar astatine the Los Angeles centrifugal show successful December 2022, VW marque brag Thomas Schäfer explained: “By the clip we were readying to bring the car successful the mediate of 2026, the mill astatine Wolfsburg – really 4 factories – was chock-a-block. To integrate different car astir diagonally into the mill would person been a full disaster. Not possible.

“So we had to marque a program for different mill adjacent by, tally it up, cleanable up the remainder and past reintegrate arsenic overmuch arsenic we tin into the aged factory."

However, by 2028 oregon 2029, request for the brand's combustion models would person reduced to the constituent that the Trinity could beryllium built connected an existing mill line, said Schäfer.

"We're not 100% definite what comes when," helium said. "But what we cognize is that everything slides a spot backmost by, say, 2 years – connected the Trinity side, specifically. That allows us, potentially, to integrate the conveyance into the factory, due to the fact that by past the ICE measurement successful the mill volition trim and we won't person the occupation that it's excessively afloat to integrate different car." 

Schäfer stopped abbreviated of naming an existing mill that could beryllium repurposed for Trinity production, adding that his squad does not cognize "100%" whether this volition beryllium the case, and that considerations indispensable beryllium made for the timelines of sibling brands Audi, Porsche, Seat and Skoda. But helium did emphasise that, ultimately, "Trinity volition travel arsenic a car".

Schäfer was speaking to Autocar aft an authoritative statement, quoting him and recently-appointed VW Group CEO Oliver Blume, was released successful effect to a study from German commercialized work Manager Magazin, which claimed the caller Wolfsburg plant’s activation was being delayed from 2026 to 2030, amid wider plans to restructure the Group.

“We're presently taking the accidental to look astatine each projects and investments and their viability,” said Blume and Schäfer. 

The institution volition clarify its improvement program successful the coming weeks arsenic incumbent Blume adjusts the Group’s roadmap successful his archetypal months arsenic CEO. Any changes are expected to beryllium announced astatine the Volkswagen Group’s yearly results presumption connected 14 March.

Handelsblatt besides reported that the committee was contiguous discussing the aboriginal of Volkswagen’s Hanover plant, aft the Transporter 6.1 ends production. Its nonstop replacement – a sibling to the Ford E-Transit Custom, developed arsenic portion of a commercialized conveyance tie-up betwixt the 2 firms – volition beryllium built successful Otosan, Turkey.

Hanover precocious added the Volkswagen Multivan and Volkswagen ID Buzz to its portfolio. The second is slated to spawn respective caller variants implicit the adjacent fewer years, including a seven-seater, camper and a sporty GTX model.

The Osnabrück mill which builds limited-volume cars specified arsenic the Volkswagen T-Roc Cabriolet is besides being considered for a caller Porsche model, said Handelsblatt. Osnabrück presently serves arsenic overflow accumulation for the Porsche 718 Boxster and Cayman.

Autocar Business has contacted the Volkswagen Group for comment.

Reporting by Mark Tisshaw and Charlie Martin