Audi Rules Out Changes in Puebla with Investment in Georgia
Audi revealed plans to build an assembly plant in the southern state of Georgia with the capacity to produce 200,000 vehicles annually, in which it will invest US$4 billion.
The announcement was made official during a rally held by President Donald J. Trump near Macon—a city southeast of Atlanta where the manufacturing facility will be located—which was attended by Audi’s global CEO, Gernot Döllner, a move that sparked harsh criticism from Volkswagen executives and public figures in Germany
According to Döllner, construction will begin next year with the goal of starting production in the early part of the next decade. The project will create 4,500 permanent jobs once it is fully operational, the executive explained.
Although the decision appears to be a response to U.S. tariff policies, the executive explained at a press conference the following day that Audi began exploring potential locations for an assembly plant in the United States three years ago, before the current administration took office.
However, he acknowledged that the tariffs implemented by Trump accelerated the selection process—which evaluated 70 locations—and ultimately led to the decision to establish the facility at the Middle Georgia Mega Site industrial park, located on the outskirts of Macon.
Döllner explained that the tariffs cost Volkswagen $4 billion last year, of which $1.4 billion was attributable to this luxury subsidiary, since the brand pays import taxes on all vehicles it sells in the U.S. market because it lacks a local production base.
The new plant will produce the larger models—the Audi Q7, Q8, and Q9 SUVs—which will leave the San José Chiapa complex in Puebla unchanged; that facility will continue to handle production of the Q5 and its variants for the global market.
Audi revealed that it also plans to produce an additional 25,000 vehicles at the assembly plant of its subsidiary Scout Motors, which is currently under construction in South Carolina, although the specific models will be announced at a later date.
