Outside an Audi factory in Brussels reported by the German car manufacturer as the ‘base’ of its electric drive, around 200 protesting workers gathered around a blaze in the morning dribble.
With poor demand and competition from China, the company is thinking of closing the plant, a decision that analysts say is indicative of the problems plaguing Europe’s larger electric car industry.
Volkswagen, the parent company of Audi, shockingly revealed earlier this month that it was thinking of taking the extraordinary step of closing production facilities in Germany.
The workers in Brussels have begun a prolonged strike, threatening 3,000 jobs. A sizable protest is scheduled on Monday in the capital, and walkouts in support are being held abroad.
After 70 years of manufacturing combustion engine models, the factory was converted to produce electric vehicles (EVs) in 2018, however some people have been camping in tents outside of it.
A 52-year-old picketing worker named Karim Chawki claimed, “They screwed up with electric.”
He added, “They desired to be creative. They drove it into a wall, although we were supposed to be a pilot plant. We will now be responsible for the costs as it was unsuccessful.”
As part of its green transition, Europe has been rushing to increase the number of electric vehicles (EVs) produced, as the EU has set a deadline of 2035 to phase out the sale of automobiles that run on fossil fuels.
However, sales have not exactly taken off.
The European Union reports that in July, there were 6% fewer new registrations across the continent than there were in the same month the previous year.
The phase-out of some subsidies contributed to this, but the industry’s concerns have intensified as a result of the diminishing demand.
According to the European Union, the number of new registrations decreased by 6% in July compared to the same month last year throughout the continent.
This was caused in part by the phase-out of some subsidies, but worries about the industry have grown as a result of the declining demand.
Chinese blues
Felipe Munoz, an expert with the automotive analytics business Jato Dynamics, described the probable shutdown of the factory in the Belgian capital as a ‘first effect’ of the difficulties European automakers are facing.
As buyers are still getting used to EVs, which have greater upfront prices and a tendency to lose value more quickly, cheaper Chinese cars have flooded the market.
An inquiry for comment from Audi was not immediately answered.
The company said that the high-end Q8 e-tron produced there was no longer in demand and that the factory was suffering from excessive manufacturing and logistical costs when it announced that it was thinking of closing its Brussels location in July.
“Europe is just too far behind,” stated Chawki, an assembly worker with a short, weathered beard and a black beanie.
“Are Chinese cars familiar to you? They are far more developed,” he continued, taking cover behind a trade union’s awning with a few others.
A few kilometers away, at the European Union headquarters, measures are being discussed to impose import charges of up to 36 percent on electric vehicles (EVs) imported from China.
The EU agreed to impose additional duties in July following the conclusion of an anti-subsidy investigation that found Chinese automakers unfairly benefited from government subsidies.
However, several nations, including Spain and Germany, are opposed to the move because they worry about harming their commercial relations with Beijing.
Abandoned
According to a report released last week by Mario Draghi, the former head of the European Central Bank, the tariffs would ‘help level the playing field’.
However, in order to sustain and advance European manufacturers’ decarbonization efforts, ‘an industrial action plan’ was required.
“These countervailing duties can give companies a breather,” Bruegel think tank expert Conor McCaffrey said.
He added, “But they will not be sufficient on their own. Significant increases in productivity and competitiveness are also required.”
Ursula von der Leyen, the head of the European Commission, has pledged to implement a new ‘Clean Industrial Deal’ within the first 100 days of her new team’s election later this year, with the goal of directing investment into industry and infrastructure.
However, for the Brussels Audi employees who face the possibility of losing their jobs, that might come too late.
Bernard Clerfayt, the minister in charge of employment for the Brussels region said to AFP, “Their anger is very legitimate, very understandable, especially since Audi is not very clear on its plans.”
He mentioned that when the company switched to electric production, it received around 27 million euros (USD 30 million) in state assistance to assist in reskilling staff.
Amid rumors of a prospective foreign purchase, Belgian unions have called for nationwide walkouts on Monday to protest impending layoffs.
“They keep us in the dark, we do not know anything,” claimed 32-year-old father-of-one Regis Lauwereyns. He said, “We feel abandoned.”
