Volkswagen and SAIC Close Nanjing Plant as China EV Pressure Mounts

Volkswagen confirmed it has already stopped production at its 17-year-old joint plant with SAIC in Nanjing and will wind the facility down during the second half of 2025. The factory, opened in 2008 with a capacity of 360,000 vehicles a year, had recently built models such as the VW Passat and Skoda Superb. Output of the Passat family will be transferred to a nearby site in Yizheng, also in Jiangsu province, as the partners refocus capacity on electric-vehicle production. Volkswagen said several SAIC-Volkswagen plants are being converted for EVs, adding that keeping the centrally located Nanjing site would have required costly upgrades. The closure marks the first full shutdown of a major Volkswagen facility in China and underscores the pressure the German carmaker faces from intensifying domestic competition and slowing demand in the world’s largest auto market. Volkswagen’s share of Chinese sales has slipped as local manufacturers accelerate electric-vehicle launches.