Overview
- Volkswagen’s supervisory board gave unanimous approval to the Zukunftsplan 2030 on Friday, endorsing a deep cost-cutting package to restore profitability.
- The plan expands job reductions to about 100,000 positions worldwide and signals cuts in Germany that account for roughly half of the additional losses.
- Operational targets include reducing European output by about 500,000 vehicles per year, halving the number of models across brands by 2035, cutting R&D and capital spending, and aiming for a roughly 9 percent profit margin by 2030.
- The company said it cannot guarantee competitive follow-up use for the Emden, Hannover, Zwickau and Neckarsulm plants and set possible production changes between 2031 and 2034, leaving workers and regions in prolonged uncertainty.
- Chancellor Friedrich Merz warned of large industrial job losses, IG Metall called the cuts painful but said some German losses might still be reversible, and experts warned the savings-first approach risks eroding Germany’s technology base as alternatives such as arms conversion or simple plant repurposing look limited.