Illustrative stock photo (source: TASR)
Trnava-based carmaker Stellantis had to suspend production during one shift the previous weekend; also two shifts on March 15 due to problems with supplies.
Investment Advisory Guide - your key to understanding the Slovak business environment (source: Investment Guide)
The plant particularly lacked the semiconductor components necessary for car manufacture, its spokesperson Peter Švec confirmed for the SITA newswire.
Although it announced later that production would be restored for the night shift and the following morning shifts, the situation for the following days remains unstable, SITA wrote.
The other three carmakers are not reporting any problems for now, the Denník E economic daily reported.
Problems may persist
The automotive industry faced quite a difficult situation shortly after the coronavirus pandemic outbreak, as all four carmakers in Slovakia had to temporarily suspend production.
The situation improved later in 2020, and the automotive sector helped boost industrial production and economy. As a result, it would be bad news for the Slovak economy if carmakers were forced to close their plants again for a longer period, Denník E wrote.
The lack of semiconductor components has been felt across Europe as the producers of chips in Asia had to reorganise their capacities, and many have found customers in other sectors, as Wolfgang Weber, executive director of Germany’s Electrical Industry (ZVEI), said in mid-January, as reported by the TASR newswire.
This included producers of computers and electronic devices.
Since chip production is a difficult process, their scarcity may persist during all of 2021, Denník E wrote.
