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November 26, 2018 by Steve Hanley
The dismal cry of Detroit that "no one wants to buy an electric car" is partly correct. Relatively few consumers want to buy a passenger car, a point is everything. While the market is shifting strongly to SUVs, crossovers and light trucks, General Motors believes that it is necessary to dramatically reduce the manufacturing of passenger cars in North America. Today, November 26, GM announced that it would stop producing at five assembly plants in North America – three of them build cars and the other two manufacture passenger car transmission components.
The plan will result in the loss of 14,700 manufacturing jobs, 6,000 in Canada and 8,700 in the United States, as well as a 15% reduction in its workforce of 54,000. GM began asking some 18,000 employees to consider an early retirement offer in October, as the company struggled to adapt to new market realities, according to the same source. The Guardian.
According to a GM press release, the factories to be closed are:
- Oshawa Assembly in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada.
- Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly in Detroit, Michigan.
- Lordstown Assembly in Warren, Ohio.
The powertrain facilities affected are
- Baltimore operations in the White Marsh, Maryland.
- Transmission operations from Warren to Warren, Michigan.
Chevy Volt is dead
The company has also confirmed Inner VE this production of the Chevy Volt will end on March 1, 2019. Is this the end of the incursion of The General in the construction of electric cars? The press release continues: "GM has recently invested in new, highly efficient vehicle architectures, including trucks, crossover vehicles and SUVs. GM now intends to prioritize future investments in its vehicles in its next-generation battery-powered architectures. With the current vehicle portfolio being optimized, it is expected that more than 75 percent of GM's global sales volume will come from five vehicle architectures by the beginning of the next decade. "
Hmmm … Does this sound a lot like the happy conversation taking place at VW headquarters these days? "At the beginning of the next decade" looks a lot like "maybe in 5 years". GM could have taken advantage of Voltec's plug-in hybrid technology developed for the Volt to offer minivans, SUVs, crossovers and plug-in hybrid trucks on the market now, but has preferred to let it go. ;opportunity.
That did not stop him from pressuring the US government to lower his fuel economy standards to allow him to build more full-size Silverado and Sierra pickups. Does anyone see the breathtaking hypocrisy behind these latest GM moves? Mary Barra, CEO of General Motors, said, "We are taking this step now, while the company and the economy are strong to keep a step ahead of the changing market conditions" , said Barra during a conference call. GM's share price rose 5.5% on news.
The Trump effect
Last July, the Donald used taxpayers' money to travel to Ohio, where he told people at a rally in the usual fashion of his pessimistic tone: "I'll tell you what. I've borrowed your beautiful roads that leave from the [Youngstown Warren Regional] Airport and I were looking at some of those big, once incredible, job-producing factories and my wife, Melania, said, "What happened?" I said, "These jobs have left Ohio. "Then he shouted," They are all coming back. They all come back. Not moving. Do not sell your house.
Today, with the announcement of the closure of the Lordstown plant, many people who believed that the promises of Trump would put their homes on the market. It's hard to pay a mortgage without a job. Yet people continue to believe in his lies, even when reality proves it. According to a report by Good Jobs Nation, the outsourcing of jobs in the United States by federal contractors has reached the highest annual level ever recorded in the first year of Trump's ten-year term, which created 10,269 US jobs abroad, almost triple the 3,801 last year. Obama Administration.
Trump told the press today that he was not satisfied with what GM was doing. "We do not like it," he told reporters. "This country has done a lot for General Motors. They better go back to Ohio and soon. Or what, Donald? No more empty promises and lies? General Motors also said today that Donald's imposed steel duties on steel "Trade wars are easy to win" Trump have cost him up to $ 1 billion in profits up to $ 1 billion. 39, now with more financial difficulties in the coming months. Thank you also for that, Mr President.
GM can survive?
GM recently recorded a decline in sales in China and the United States, as customers found other companies' offers more to their liking. Last year, it escaped from the European market, preferring to sell its business at the best possible price rather than complying with stricter standards in terms of emissions. He seems more interested in using a fleet of autonomous vehicles in cities around the world than by selling cars.
Is GM in a downward spiral? It's too early to know, but it seems a little shocked by the tectonic changes in the market that have occurred in recent years. He went bankrupt in 2008 and was saved by taxpayers. There will probably be little appetite to do this again soon.
The three current American automakers – GM, Ford and Chrysler – will be subjected to severe testing in the coming years, as they face growing competition not only from Tesla, but also from Chinese automakers. There is every reason to believe that only one of the "Big Three" will still have a decade or so.
A brilliant idea
CleanTechnica usual reader Dan Allard has a good idea. Tesla needs a factory for its upcoming Y, Semi and Roadster models. Why not buy one of these closed factories at GM and reuse it? After all, the Fremont factory was once part of the GM empire and the purchase turned out well for Tesla. The prospect that Tesla will do what GM can not do with these factories would be a delightful irony. It may be unlikely, but it would be a great idea and a great way to show GM its mistake.
About the author
Steve Hanley Steve writes about the interface between technology and sustainability from his home in Rhode Island and wherever the singularity could take him. Charles Kuralt is his muse. "I see the road is turning, I wonder what's going on around the turn?"
You can follow him on Google + and on Twitter.
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