Audi's Neckarsulm plant stops production on supply chain disruption

BERLIN -- Audi’s Neckarsulm plant in Germany has been forced to shut down production since the beginning of the week, an Audi spokesperson confirmed to Automotive News Europe.

Supply bottlenecks caused by the war in Ukraine and the coronavirus pandemic, as well as the current situation regarding the supply of semiconductors, are contributing factors.

Production of the A4 and A5 models has been at a standstill in Neckarsulm since Monday. Production of the A6 and A7 models has been stopped since March 7.

Production will be paused until Friday, March 25.

At Audi's production site at Boellinger Hoefe, output of the e-tron GT and R8 has been suspended since March 7 and will also remain stopped until March 25.

An Audi spokesperson said the automaker is continuously determining the degree of impact on business operations in a VW Group-wide crisis team. "In the coming days and weeks, we will continuously reassess the situation."

Ukraine parts shortages have put up to 15 percent Europe’s auto output at risk, according to an auto analyst at Wells Fargo.

VW, Porsche and BMW have already cut production in Germany because of the supply disruption, while Mercedes-Benz has reduced output at factories in Germany and Hungary.

VW Group CEO Herbert Diess said this week the automaker would be shifting more production to North America and China as a result of the Ukraine conflict and would prioritize China this year.

The crisis in Ukraine has also prompted companies to suspend shipments to Russia, while a senior member of Russia's ruling party proposed nationalizing automakers that shut down operations there.