PRAGUE — Volkswagen Group is postponing its decision on where to locate a planned gigafactory for electric car batteries in eastern Europe beyond 2022.
VW pointed to the current economic environment in announcing the decision on Thursday.
“Volkswagen AG and its battery company PowerCo are continuously evaluating suitable sites for their next gigafactory in Europe,” VW said.
“So far, no decisions have been taken, the evaluation process is ongoing,” the company said.
The CTK news agency earlier reported that the decision would be postponed by several months.
The Czech Republic is among the locations considered for the plant, which should start producing batteries in 2027. The others are in Hungary, Poland and Slovakia.
Skoda, Volkswagen’s Czech unit, in October said it expected its parent to make a decision on the location by the end of 2022. Skoda assembles battery packs at its main Mlada Boleslav plant in the Czech Republic. It would benefit from local cell production but a proposed site for the cell factory in Pilsen is opposed by local residents, according to reports.
“There is no pressure to act as we take some more time for decision making in light of current circumstances,” VW said. “At present, there is no impact on planned start of construction or start of production.”
VW’s planned battery cell plant in eastern Europe would be the fourth under its plan to build six such sites across Europe by the end of the decade.