Amid the crisis at Volkswagen, Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Robert Habeck visited the VW plant in Emden and clearly opposed plant closures. "The locations should be preserved," said the Green Party politician on Wednesday, emphasizing that all efforts must be aimed at improving the company's cost structure without being "cold-hearted" towards the workforce. At the same time, Habeck hinted at new subsidies for electric vehicles.

Volkswagen is currently struggling with high costs, especially in its core brand VW passenger cars. The company has terminated the job security agreement that has been in place for decades with the trade unions, leading to the possibility of plant closures and layoffs. These plans are facing strong opposition from the works council and IG Metall.

According to a report by Manager Magazin, up to 30,000 jobs at VW could be at risk in Germany in the medium term. However, the General Works Council sharply rejected these speculations, calling the mentioned number "nonsense.

Habeck has convened a "car summit" for Monday, where representatives of the largest automobile manufacturers, the IG Metall union, and the VDA industry association, among others, want to discuss the future of the automotive industry. In addition to tax incentives for electric cars as company vehicles, the federal government is also examining further measures to promote electromobility.

The crisis at VW is also reflected on the stock market. On Wednesday, VW's preferred shares closed on XETRA with a loss of 3.22 percent at 90.82 euros.