Volkswagen to Halve Model Range After Board Stops Short of Approving Job Cuts

Volkswagen has unveiled a sweeping strategy through 2030 that will halve its model lineup and cut vehicle variants by as much as 75%, following a closely watched supervisory board meeting in Wolfsburg on 9 July. Annual production capacity will be reduced to around nine million vehicles, down from roughly 10 million today and about 12 million before the pandemic, in response to what the group called sharply intensified competition. Notably, management made no announcement on job cuts or plant closures. Reuters reported that labour representatives, who hold half the seats on the 20-member supervisory board, blocked the wider restructuring plan, which had reportedly envisaged closing four German factories and cutting as many as 100,000 jobs worldwide. IG Metall mobilised protests at around 20 Volkswagen sites ahead of the meeting, and works council chief Daniela Cavallo issued an ultimatum for CEO Oliver Blume to address workers directly. The measures announced did not require board approval. The pressure is acute: net profit fell 28% to €1.56 billion in the quarter to March on revenue down 2.5%, and second-quarter global deliveries dropped 8.6% year on year. The state of Lower Saxony's roughly 20% voting stake and the Volkswagen Law further constrain management's options.