Bosch suspends 2 China factories on COVID lockdowns

Robert Bosch has suspended production at two of its factories in China and is operating two others on a so-called "closed loop system" as COVID-19 lockdowns batter manufacturers.

A thermotechnology plant in Shanghai, which makes home hot water systems, and an auto components factory in Jilin province have suspended work because of local pandemic controls, the company said in a statement late Monday.  

Bosch's auto parts factories in Shanghai and Taicang are operating on a closed loop system, where workers stay onsite or are ferried to-and-from secure accommodations to avoid exposure to the virus.

Bosch joins a growing list of companies affected by China's strict COVID-Zero policies, which have seen the vast majority of Shanghai's 25 million residents still under tight movement restrictions and the northeastern province of Jilin locked down for about a month.  

Automakers including Tesla and Volkswagen Group have been forced to suspend production at their factories in Shanghai this month.

Chinese EV startup Nio said Saturday it has halted production and delayed deliveries because many of its suppliers have had to suspend operations.

Battery giant CATL has implemented a closed loop for workers at its main factory in Ningde, which has seen sporadic outbreaks of COVID, in a bid to avoid the kind of shutdowns hurting Tesla and Nio.

“We are currently seeing temporary effects on logistics and supply chain sourcing,” Bosch said in the statement. “In this situation, we are doing everything we can to maintain the supply chains as much as possible and to serve the demands of our customers.”

Bosch ranks No. 1 on the Automotive News Europe list of the top 100 global suppliers, with worldwide parts sales to automakers of $46.5 billion in 2020.

The European Union Chamber of Commerce in China said on Monday it had sent a letter to the country's cabinet detailing how the country's COVID control measures had disrupted European companies and urged it to revise its policies, such as by allowing home quarantine for some COVID patients.

Bloomberg and Reuters contributed