“Fewer parts, less work, fewer jobs”

The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) reports on a study by the German Research Institute for Energy Technology and Combustion Engines (FEV) looking at the future costs of electric vehicles. The president of the German Carmakers Association recently predicted 15 to 25 percent of new cars registered in 2025 would be electric vehicles. With electric vehicles requiring fewer parts than combustion engines and relying on different manufacturing processes and materials, the industry will be seeing structural change. The industry is likely to see a shift away from mid-sized manufacturing firms towards a concentrated, capital-intensive supply sector. How many jobs will be lost remains to be seen, Johannes Winterhagen writes. 

For more information on Germany’s car industry and energy transition, see the CLEW dossier The Energiewende and German carmakers.