The Lower Saxony Minister-President, Olaf Lies (SPD), stated a desire to investigate the possibility of manufacturing Chinese vehicles within German Volkswagen facilities. According to Lies speaking to the “Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung” this issue warrants an open discussion to explore potential advantages for VW’s production sites and the local supplier industry.
Lies acknowledged that it is impossible to halt the increasing efforts of Chinese automakers to penetrate the European market. However, he emphasized the simultaneous need to guarantee the utilization rates of the factories, adding, “We must find a solution for the employees regarding how this can be achieved”. He pointed out that new models are soon arriving on the Chinese market, models VW has developed and is now producing in China collaborating with reliable and close Chinese partners, or independently. This naturally raises the question of what perspectives might emerge from this situation and whether collaboration could occur in Europe as well.
He further argued that the automaker, in which Lower Saxony holds a 20 percent stake in voting shares, possesses “global production and logistics capabilities that hardly any other company has”. Lies cautioned that success cannot be achieved by isolation, nor by maintaining a stance of wanting “nothing to do with” others. Instead, the crucial question is whether they can establish a partnership based on equal footing. The Minister-President expressed confidence that Volkswagen has a proven track record of adapting successfully to changing conditions, believing that the company will remain globally successful by employing varied strategies for different markets, not just in Lower Saxony.
