The Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, and Volkswagen Group CEO Oliver Blume
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and Volkswagen Group CEO Oliver Blume met in Madrid to discuss a far-reaching investment plan to help make Spain an industrial hub for electric mobility.
During the meeting, Oliver Blume and the President of SEAT S.A., Wayne Griffiths, discussed with the Prime Minister and the Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism, Reyes Maroto, the details of the €10 billion investment programme called “Future: Fast Forward”, which Volkswagen announced last year together with its battery division PowerCo, its Spanish subsidiary SEAT S.A. and its 49 partners. As part of the plan, which is supported by the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, Volkswagen will electrify its car factories in Martorell and Pamplona and build a battery gigafactory in Sagunto as part of the PERTE programme for electric and connected vehicles.
The Volkswagen Group CEO welcomed the commitment of the central government as well as Catalonia, the Valencian Community and Navarre to the automotive industry. Blume and Sánchez also spoke about the need to work together on the introduction of electric vehicles and the development of charging infrastructure.
“Together with the Spanish government, we want to drive Spain’s transformation into the European centre for electric mobility. The investment plan will create sustainable growth in Spain. We estimate that the investments will help reduce CO2 emissions by 2 million tonnes per year and boost the country’s economy by €21 billion. In addition, the plan will help safeguard and create more than 145,000 jobs and have a positive impact on the Spanish social security system with an estimated €2.4 billion in additional tax revenues,” said Oliver Blume.
In order to create a more competitive European industrial policy, the Volkswagen Group CEO also asked the Spanish government to support balanced EU7 legislation and Europe’s strategic independence in terms of energy and the supply of raw materials and components. www.volkswagen-newsroom.com; www.seat.es
