Volkswagen is producing more electric cars in Emden and Zwickau than expected.
Volkswagen is responding to the electric vehicle boom in Germany and Europe: According to Sales Director Martin Sander, the company is adjusting its production plans. As a result, fewer internal combustion engines will be manufactured in Wolfsburg this year — while more electric vehicles will roll off the assembly lines in Emden and Zwickau.
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According to a report by Automobilwoche, Volkswagen is adjusting its production plans for this year due to high demand for electric vehicles. The industry magazine cites Martin Sander, the head of sales, as saying that planned extra shifts at the main Wolfsburg plant, where only internal combustion engines have been produced so far, will be canceled. As a result, “the output is likely to reach last year’s level of around 580,000 units instead of over 600,000,” the report states.
At the same time, Volkswagen is creating the conditions for better utilization of electric vehicle production facilities in Emden and Zwickau. It is said that at least two extra shifts are now planned in Emden for the production of the ID.7. Zwickau, on the other hand, benefits from stronger demand for the ID.3 Neo. “This helps to improve the current underutilization,” writes Automobilwoche, citing sources within the company.
Zwickau and Emden are known to be the company’s dedicated electric vehicle production sites. In both cities, Volkswagen reduced the number of production lines from two to one each in May to cut excess capacity. Now, the trend is shifting back in the other direction, with Volkswagen increasing electric vehicle production there again. This trend is likely to continue in Emden, as the ID. Tiguan—successor to the currently produced ID.4—is set to roll off the assembly line there soon. Demand is expected to rise significantly there, similar to what happened with the ID.3 Neo (successor to the ID.3).
In Zwickau, in addition to the ID.3 Neo, the Audi Q4 e-tron (including the Q4 Sportback e-tron) and the Cupra Born are currently being produced. The ID.4, which is also assembled there, will move entirely to Emden following its refresh as the ID. Tiguan. Meanwhile, the less successful ID.5 model will be discontinued. In 2024, things looked very bleak for Zwickau as plans suggested only the Audi model would remain, but the prospects have improved somewhat since then.
"Demand for battery electric vehicles is rising significantly in Germany and other European countries," Martin Sander, the head of sales, was quoted as saying in Automobilwoche. This marks an important "turning point in the transformation of the automotive market," driven in part by high prices for gasoline and diesel. At the same time, it means "lower demand for vehicles with internal combustion engines."
VW itself seems to have been caught off guard by this momentum. The management had prepared its production plans for 2026 based on a slower recovery. It remains to be seen how this "changed market situation" will affect the strict cost-cutting and restructuring plan, which leaves the future of the two pure electric vehicle factories as well as those in Hannover (VW Nutzfahrzeuge) and Neckarsulm (Audi) uncertain starting in the new decade.
It’s clear that Volkswagen is in a favorable position right now: the updated ID.3 Neo and ID. Tiguan models, along with the so-called Urban Electric Car Family, coincide with a surge in demand for electric vehicles across Europe. The Urban Electric Car Family consists of the electric compact cars ID. Polo, Cupra Raval, Skoda Epiq, and ID. Cross, all of which are produced at two factories in Spain. The most recent addition was the ID. Cross, launched earlier this week in Navarra near Pamplona. According to Automobilwoche, there are now over 100,000 pre-orders for these four models, including more than 40,000 for the electric Polo.
"Based on new orders, Volkswagen is currently selling more pure electric cars than internal combustion engine vehicles in Germany. However, the company earns less money from this. The profit per electric car is lower than that of comparable internal combustion engine vehicles," summarizes the industry magazine.