Sì del Consiglio di vigilanza al piano di tagli di Volkswagen. Verso addio a Seat entro il 2029

The Supervisory Board of Volkswagen approved the drastic restoration plan presented by CEO Oliver Blume on Thursday evening, September 3. The project had been rejected in the July meeting due to objections from the Lower Saxony Government and unions to further 5,000 layoffs, in addition to the 50,000 already in progress, and the closure of four factories in Germany.

The unanimous approval came as a surprise during an extraordinary session of the Council, which was scheduled to meet on September 4. Despite this, the CDU was reportedly prepared to bypass the Supervisory Board and submit the plan to shareholders' vote, an unprecedented move in Germany. This would neutralize the co-management system that grants the Land power to veto strategic decisions (thanks to a 20% share), potentially splitting the Volkswagen brand.

The Lower Saxony Government stated in a statement that the group would streamline its stakes and reduce the model range by around 50%. The decision empowers Blume with a stronger mandate to advance his "Future Plan." However, this is not the only news of the day, as reported by the magazine "Wirtschaftswoche." The Group's administration council intends to withdraw the Spanish brand Seat, with a long-standing tradition founded in the 1950s by the Spanish state and Fiat, and later passed to VW in the 1980s, from the market by the latest by 2029.

Excluding Seat from the strategic vision for 2030, VW aims to save costs, simplify processes, and focus more on its twin brand Cupra, which has long surpassed Seat in terms of sales. According to Bild, 170,100 Cupra were delivered in the first half of 2026, compared to 129,600 Seat. A VW spokesperson, when approached by the German newspaper, warned that internal documents are discussed and approved in the competent bodies and are not being anticipated. However, the possible closure of Seat is just one part of the major restructuring underway at VW.