ZWICKAU (dpa-AFX) - According to automotive expert Werner Olle, the VW plant in Zwickau is on the verge of its third major reinvention. Following its relaunch in 1990 and its transformation into Europe's first dedicated electric vehicle factory beginning in 2018, the focus is now shifting towards embracing the circular economy, Olle told the German Press Agency. "As a modern manufacturing and logistics site, Zwickau offers ideal conditions to become a European center for the dismantling and diagnostics of electric vehicles," he said.
Other manufacturers in Europe are already active in this field, emphasized Olle, who co-founded the Chemnitz Automotive Institute (CATI) at Chemnitz University of Technology. He pointed to Renault, Stellantis, and, since this year, Toyota. The starting conditions in Zwickau are comparable to those at Toyota's Burnaston site in the UK. There, the initial focus is on around 10,000 vehicles per year, Olle explained. Burnaston also continues to produce new vehicles--just as is planned for Zwickau.
Olle acknowledged that the inspection and dismantling of old vehicles will initially require fewer staff than new vehicle production. The Zwickau plant currently employs around 9,200 people, according to the latest company figures. Additional jobs come from suppliers.
On Friday (December 12), the plant will celebrate the 35th anniversary of Volkswagen Sachsen. The milestone comes at a time of great uncertainty, Olle noted. "The decline in vehicle production through 2027 is painful." Overcapacity at German VW sites is also affecting Zwickau, where production has now been reduced to a two-shift operation. In the long term, some models are expected to be relocated to other facilities.
Nevertheless, Olle stressed that the site and its workforce have repeatedly demonstrated adaptability in the past. Even as volumes decrease, Zwickau will remain one of the group's key electric mobility plants.
