Mercedes parent company Daimler is looking to sell its Hambach factory in France, which is were Smart has been manufacturing its models since 1997.
The sale is part of the carmaker’s plan to streamline its production system and, in their own words, “improve its cost structure”.
The company said that the high investments in electrification and digitalization in their future models combined with the financial blow from the coronavirus pandemic is what drives them to “optimize” their global production network.
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The Hambach factory has been building the electric Smart EQ Fortwo since 2019 and currently employs around 1,600 workers. Back in 2018 Daimler invested into the Smart production facility to prepare it for EV production and even planned to build the upcoming EQA there, which is now reportedly going to be produced in Rastatt instead.
That was before Daimler decided to sell 50 percent of the Smart brand to Geely last year, establishing a new joint venture with the Chinese carmaker that will move production of future Smart models in China.
However, the German carmaker appears to have some conditions for the new owner of the Smart factory. Markus Schäfer, Member of Daimler’s Management Board, said: “An important goal for us is to secure the future of the location. Another condition: The current Smart models will continue to be produced in Hambach.”
Smart is reportedly planning a new high-riding EV, following Daimler’s deal with Geely, that’s expected to make its debut after the reveal of the next-generation ForTwo and ForFour models in 2021.
