Despite the chip crisis, Volkswagen probably won’t have to order any production stops next week. As things stand today, production is secured at all German locations within this period, the group announced in Wolfsburg. This also applies to the subsidiaries Audi, Porsche and VW Commercial Vehicles, said a spokesman when asked. However, it is not yet possible to estimate what will happen next. “Against the background of the dynamic situation, short-term effects on the Volkswagen Group’s production network cannot be fundamentally ruled out,” said a spokesman. Group boss Oliver Blume was more clear in an interview with the weekly newspaper “Zeit”. “As things stand today, production is secured at all of the group’s German locations until November 4th,” he said. “Nevertheless, the situation is critical.” So far, the chip bottlenecks have remained without the feared production stops. “The delivery bottleneck at the Dutch chip manufacturer Nexperia has so far had no impact on production in the Volkswagen Group’s German plants,” said the spokesman. This week, production took place as planned at all German locations. Because of the public holiday in Lower Saxony and Saxony, production will be suspended there on Friday. Search for replacement suppliers Just a week ago, VW warned of possible production downtimes, which could also occur at short notice. The reason is delivery problems at the chip manufacturer Nexperia. “The Volkswagen Group remains in close contact with its suppliers and continues to examine alternative procurement options to minimize possible impacts on its supply chain,” said the spokesman.More on the topicNexperia is experiencing delivery problems after the Dutch government took control of the company run by a Chinese parent company. China then stopped exports of Nexperia products such as chips for the auto industry. The background is the trade dispute between the USA and China. VW says it is indirectly affected by this. “The Dutch company Nexperia is not a direct supplier to the Volkswagen Group,” said the spokesman. “However, some Nexperia components are used in vehicle parts supplied to the Volkswagen Group by its direct suppliers.” Other manufacturers and suppliers are also affected by the difficulties at Nexperia.
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