Labour tension: Volkswagen has served notice to end several collective agreements from 31 December 2026.
- Localisation goal: Nissan targets building 80% of the vehicles it sells in the US there by the end of 2030.
- Negotiation reopened: Volkswagen is reopening its labour deal with IG Metall, putting future labour terms in play.
The latest Automotive Manufacturing Newsletter from Automotive World, authored by Anmol Mothy, packs a striking amount of capital expenditure and industrial relations drama into a single edition. For manufacturing professionals, three storylines stand out: battery joint ventures, a major combustion-adjacent model investment, and a labour confrontation that could reshape cost structures.
PowerCo and Gotion commit to battery scale-up
The combination of cell production and materials work in the same announcement is notable — vertical integration across both remains one of the harder problems in electrification, and pairing the two in joint ventures signals an intent to control more of the value chain rather than buy it on the open market.
BMW doubles down on the 3 Series in Bavaria
Spreading that sum across three sites suggests substantial retooling rather than a single-plant refresh. For suppliers and process engineers in the region, this is the kind of programme that drives multi-year equipment and logistics planning.
Nissan sets a US localisation target
Nissan aims to build 80% of the vehicles it sells in the US there by the end of 2030.
Volkswagen reopens its labour deal
Serving notice ahead of 31 December 2026 gives both sides a defined runway, but ending multiple collective agreements at once raises the stakes considerably. Manufacturing leaders watching European labour costs will want to track how this negotiation unfolds.
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