A new setback in the electrical change of this flaks of the Volkswagen group in crisis. Porsche’s luxury car manufacturer plans to say goodbye to most employees in his subsidiary of Cellforce batteries, according to a union source. Porsche wants to fire 200 of the 286 employees of the only Site in Celforce, in Krchentellinsfurt (southwest), said Kai Lamparter to AFP, local representative of the IG Metall Union, confirming information from the weekly Spiegel published the previous day.
Kai Lamparter claims to have been informed of a collective dismissal admitted to the Reouten Employment Agency. 100% of the owner of this subsidiary created in 2021, Porsche did not confirm the Spiegel information.
A complex turn
Cellforce specializes in the production of battery cells, a crucial element of electric cars. But in April, Porsche had warned that he would cancel the expansion projects of his subsidiary, which recorded “additional exceptional costs” in the first half of 2025. These are in particular the depreciation of their production facilities, up to 295 million euros. Previously considered a “centerpiece” of the Volkswagen Group brand, according to its general director Oliver Blume, Cellforce has never managed to catch up with the heavy Asian weights in the sector.
In July, Porsche also announced the preparation of a new savings plan, after a first wave of 1,900 publications announced in February. It is a new setback for German car manufacturers, caught in a complex electrical change due to high energy costs and a loss of international competitiveness.
Favor external suppliers
According to the Handelsblatt newspaper, the luxury record specialist now in external suppliers, such as the Chinese Catl or the LG of South Korea, in the field of batteries.
The announcement of dry dismissals is also a surprise in the Volkswagen Group, which had promised not to resort to it by presenting a massive savings plan in December that contains 35,000 employment cuts, underemployed outputs. Kai Lamparter demands that Porsche expect that in mid -September negotiate a collective agreement with the Works Council, created in early August, instead of “face 200 individual judicial cases.” The IG Metall Union will organize a demonstration in Kicentellinsfurt on Monday with local political representatives.
Source: BFM TV
