Audi begins final talks on Brussels plant

In February 2024, Audi confirmed that the next generation of the Q8 e-tron would be built in Mexico. As the Q8 e-tron is currently the model series being built at the Brussels plant, the plant was already facing a problem. The situation became even more complex when Audi announced in July that it intended to withdraw production from Belgium ahead of schedule. Until then, Audi management had always emphasised that it wanted to hold on to the Belgian site and find a common future. However, in July, the carmaker pointed to the “long-standing structural challenges at the Brussels site” – and the plant’s closure was no longer ruled out.

A special consultation process is required in Belgium if the plant is closed and employees are made redundant as a result. That is now underway, but Audi increased the pressure further at the start of the negotiations. “Demand for electric full-size models is weaker than expected. Demand for the Q8 e-tron model family is below plan,” Audi Board Member for Production Gerd Walker said, according to a Handelsblatt report. The production figures assumed for 2024 and 2025 are even lower than previously expected – and even with these figures, the plant was only partially utilised.

“The management of Audi Brussels has now initiated the legally required information and consultation process with employee representatives in Belgium. Only then will it be possible to decide on measures. We cannot confirm any figures or timetables,” Walker continued.

However, Belgium’s two major trade unions have indicated a possible timetable should the plant actually be closed. They assume that 1,500 of the 2,900 jobs at the plant will be cut as early as October. A further 1,100 jobs could be cut in May 2025, leaving just 300 people employed there. In addition to the Audi employees, around 1,000 jobs at suppliers who supply the plant are also on the line. That would mean a total of 3,600 jobs.

One option that Audi is probably considering is battery production in Brussels for other Group plants. However, it would probably only save a small number of jobs. According to Walker, the “alternative scenarios” also include a takeover by investors, with initial talks apparently underway. An investor has apparently expressed interest in the factory itself and some of the staff, but not in the car production line, writes Handelsblatt, citing Ronny Liedts from the Belgian metal and textile workers’ union ACV Metea.

It is unlikely that entire cars will continue to be built in Brussels in the future, at least for the time being. In addition to the high labour costs, the challenge is that the plant is virtually impossible to expand due to its location right next to the railway tracks. As there is no press shop in Brussels, large body parts have to be delivered from other plants, which also increases logistics costs. A potential buyer would need a second site to produce body parts there.

Citing management in Brussels, Handelsblatt writes that Audi is only planning to produce 20,000-25,000 Q8 e-trons this year, with 13,600 units built in the first half of the year. Audi is even only planning 6,000 vehicles for 2025. That will hardly be enough to cover costs.

handelsblatt.com (in German)