Audi seeks solution for Brussels base, says management

Audi workers in Forest should not be in danger of losing their jobs, even though the new version of Audi’s electric Q8 e-tron model, currently manufactured in Brussels, will not be made there, the firm has confirmed.

“We are building a successor to the Q8 e-tron in Mexico from 2027. It is already decided,” one executive committee member told German specialist car magazine Automobilwoche. According to the German publication, the final decision has not yet been made.

Audi is looking for a solution for the Brussels plant and another brand may be built at the Forest base, Audi Brussels managing director Gerd Walker told unions. Parent company Volkswagen has also announced plans to interweave the brands more closely.

Audi Brussels management also announced that various earlier scenarios were being studied to find a successor to the SUV (sports utility vehicle) model.

But Ronny Liedts, representative of Belgium’s largest trade union, the ACV-CSC, voiced concern that factory workers may be laid off, especially in 2027 when there will be surplus staff.

Liedts is particularly worried about the temporary workers – some 500 people – employed alongside nearly 3,000 permanent staff at Audi Brussels.

He said the German headquarters has been questioned on the future of the Forest factory and that Audi Brussels must now reply to this question.