WOKEMOBILE
Volkswagen to build own US plant for Scout brand - Automobilwoche

Fri, 24 February 2023 

The logo of a Volkswagen dealership is pictured in Pasadena

BERLIN (Reuters) - Volkswagen Group will build its own production plant in the United States for its new Scout brand rather than collaborating with a partner, industry publication Automobilwoche reported on Friday, citing company sources.

Volkswagen said last May it planned to reintroduce the Scout off-road brand, creating a separate, independent company to build Scout trucks and SUVs starting in 2026 that will be designed, engineered, and manufactured in the United States for U.S. customers.

Automobilwoche had reported in November that the carmaker was in talks with Foxconn, which has expanded into building electric vehicles (EVs) for auto brands, and Magna International subsidiary Magna Steyr about building a joint plant.

Building its own plant was the least likely option, the publication reported at the time, also citing company sources.

Volkswagen is expanding its existing U.S. plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, to produce the ID. Buzz. However, the Scout brand will build off-road electric pick-up trucks and SUVs that require a new platform and the Chattanooga plant does not have enough space to do it all, a source told Reuters last May.

A spokesperson for Volkswagen said that a decision on whether to open a plant for Scout had not yet been made but that production was still due to begin 2026 as previously stated.

Volkswagen-owned Audi's CEO Markus Duesmann said in an interview on Friday that the premium brand could build a plant in the U.S. either alone or together with the Volkswagen Group for EVs, though no decision had been made on that either.

(Reporting by Jan Schwartz, Victoria Waldersee, Writing by Friederike Heine, Editing by Paul Carrel, Miranda Murray and Keith Weir)