« What a waste! » : Volkswagen ends its exemplary electric car factory in Dresden

Under the winter sun, the famous "glass factory" of Volkswagen in Dresden still sparkles, but this glow is no longer that of a promising future. The factory, once renowned for its innovation in the electric car sector, is set to bid farewell, in an announcement that has brought many tears, but not from car enthusiasts – rather from the distraught employees. "What a waste!" some executives are already murmuring, while others silently continue assembling electric cars, as if each final model they put together is a symbol of the tragedy unfolding before their eyes.

Inside this modern cathedral, it is not just production lines that are shutting down, but a vision that the brand had for the future of the automotive industry. Created in 2001 to showcase German know-how, the Dresden factory will ultimately have achieved only one feat: attracting nearly three million curious visitors, eager to discover its wonders, without ever really shining on the economic front. Industry experts, with unwavering seriousness, agree: here, time has frozen in the illusory, like a beautiful painting displayed in a museum, but which can never be sold.

Volkswagen and the energy transition: a bumpy road

The closure of this iconic factory fits into a larger context where the German automotive industry, grappling with a major crisis, struggles to find its way in the energy transition. CEOs of major groups, hurriedly called to the rescue, have acknowledged that the era of easy profits is over. Over 50,000 jobs lost in a year, profits plummeting by 76%, and amid all this, a fleet of electric cars that remains desperately in parking lots.

The reality is that Volkswagen, with its once-glorious ambitions, has failed to captivate the market with its range of electric models. Customers are turning to more affordable and attractive alternatives, leaving the brand struggling in an ocean of production surplus. In clear terms, the factory closure in Dresden is the direct result of an inability to break through the price barrier and offer something enticing for the modern consumer.

An uncertain future

As the curtain falls, employees, some with over 20 years of service, feel that this is not just a career change. It resonates like a true tragedy, even for those who will remain in the shadows, like extras on the set of a failed film. "Yes, we will have a salary until 2030, but what does it mean to become a tour guide for nostalgic visitors?" indignantly asks René Rostock, a big guy and fervent advocate for the craftsmanship that shone in the warm cottages of mechanics.

Towards an innovation campus?

And here, amidst the tears and cries of despair, emerges a far-fetched idea: transforming the closed factory into an innovation campus, to make Dresden the " Stanford of the East." Yes, ambition is present, with a promise of an investment of 50 million euros and a hand extended towards the Saxon university. But many are scratching their heads, asking whether there is any credibility left in this plan. For, as the world of the energy transition has proven, know-how always departs faster than it arrives.

At present, the tension in the automotive sector is morphing into another spectacle, and industry players seem far more concerned with their survival than with envisioning a bright future. For the relocation of innovation could prove to be a chimera. The only question that remains unanswered is this: Will Volkswagen be able to reinvent itself before becoming a beautiful piece of eco-museum in the illustrious history of the German industry?

Source: www.letelegramme.fr

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