Volkswagen's ambitious plan to dominate the global electric vehicle (EV) market by 2025 has faltered, reflecting deeper issues in Europe’s EV transition. Former CEO Herbert Diess once promised to transform VW into a leader in electromobility, but current sales and structural challenges tell a different story.
Despite selling nearly 800,000 EVs last year, these vehicles only accounted for 8% of VW's total sales. The lion’s share of profits still comes from combustion-engine models. This imbalance is now leading to significant workforce reductions. VW’s Zwickau plant, fully converted to EV production in 2022, is set to cut up to 1,000 temporary jobs due to weak demand.
Moreover, production shifts are being reduced both in Zwickau and at Porsche’s Zuffenhausen plant, where the electric Taycan model’s sales are underwhelming. June saw an 18% drop in EV registrations compared to the previous year, highlighting a broader market contraction.
Economists like Joachim Ragnitz from the Ifo Institute argue that German manufacturers overestimated EV demand while facing stiff competition from cheaper Chinese models. Political decisions, such as the abrupt removal of EV subsidies by Germany's economic ministry and the EU's imposition of tariffs on Chinese EVs, have compounded these difficulties.
In response, companies like Mercedes-Benz and BMW are revisiting their commitment to EVs, with Mercedes planning to invest more in combustion engines and BMW maintaining a balanced approach to both technologies.
As VW and other manufacturers navigate these turbulent waters, the call for renewed government support grows louder. Without sustained subsidies, Germany’s goal of having 15 million EVs on the road by 2030 appears increasingly out of reach.
EVs are one of the biggest propoganda supported by corrupt governments!