Shulou(Shulou.com)11/24 Report--

CTOnews.com Volkswagen is cutting production of electric vehicles at its Emden plant in northwestern Germany, an adjustment the veteran carmaker said was partly due to "strong consumer resistance to electric vehicles," resulting in lower-than-expected sales of electric vehicles.

Demand for electric vehicles is currently about 30 percent lower than Volkswagen's forecast. Manfred Wullf, head of the Emden plant, commented,"We've had a lot of consumer resistance in the electric car space. "

Volkswagen blamed the drop in consumer interest in part on reduced subsidies for electric vehicle buyers across Europe and the impact of rising inflation, which has affected the company's overall electric vehicle business. In addition to production cuts at the Emden plant, Volkswagen will also lay off 300 of the 1500 employees involved in electric vehicle production at the plant.

Despite the surge in adoption of electric vehicles in recent years, manufacturers are reportedly increasingly concerned that electric vehicles are starting to become less attractive due to their high cost. After all, battery-powered cars are more expensive than gasoline-powered cars, and the price gap between electricity and fuel has narrowed.

As a result, Volkswagen will delay production of its upcoming ID.7 sedan from July to later this year.

Volkswagen UK said: "Like other automakers, the Volkswagen brand is currently seeing a slowdown in demand for electric vehicles. Reasons for this include reduced subsidies, higher inflation rates and extended delivery times due to shortages of spare parts. We believe that over time, the demand for pure electric vehicles will increase again. With the significantly revised ID.3 and the new ID.7, we will continue to introduce attractive new models. "

Recognizing the need for price competition in the electric vehicle space, Volkswagen has shown off an ID. 2all prototype that costs less than £ 22000 (CTOnews.com notes: currently around RMB202, 000). Volkswagen CEO Thomas Schäfer also hinted at a cheaper electric car that would cost less than £ 17500 (currently around RMB161, 000).

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