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Audi CEO defends $4 billion Georgia plant amid VW cuts, tariffs
CNBC reports Audi CEO Gernot Dollner said a planned $4 billion Georgia factory is meant to grow U.S. sales and cut tariff exposure, with production in the early 2030s.
- New headline Was: “Audi defends plans for a $4 billion Georgia plant amid VW restructuring, tariffs”
- Our desk filed its story
Audi Chief Executive Gernot Dollner on Sunday defended plans for a roughly $4 billion factory in Georgia, saying the project is meant to expand U.S. sales and reduce the brand's exposure to import tariffs1.
CNBC reported that the plant would be Audi's first in the United States, with production expected to start in the early 2030s and annual capacity of up to 200,000 vehicles1. About half of that output would be exported, according to the company1.
President Donald Trump announced the project Saturday at a Georgia rally near the planned site, CNBC said1. Dollner joined Trump at the event and later told reporters the United States is the world's second-largest premium market and that Audi is not fully using that potential1.
"We have significantly greater ambitions for Audi in America," Dollner said at a media roundtable Sunday1.
The timing overlaps a Volkswagen Group restructuring that includes plans to cut 50,000 jobs and close four German plants, including an Audi site, between 2031 and 2034, CNBC reported1. Dollner said the U.S. decision was not aimed at Germany and that Germany remains Audi's development base1.
He said more than 70 sites were evaluated over many months1. Current tariffs on vehicles from Germany are 15%, down from 25%, and Audi imported all of its U.S. vehicles from Europe or Mexico last year, when tariffs cost the brand 1.2 billion euros ($1.4 billion), according to CNBC1.
Dollner said the Trump administration asked Audi to announce the plant at the rally promoting Republicans ahead of Nov. 3 midterm elections, and that the company accepted the invitation1. He described the factory as a three-year project whose public unveiling coincided with that event1.
The Georgia plant is expected to produce Audi's Q7, Q8 and Q9 SUVs1. Audi of America President Vito Paladino said the goal is to make Audi a larger U.S. player and that more investment details are coming1. CNBC said Audi's U.S. deliveries were roughly flat through the third quarter after a 16% decline from 2024 to 20251.
