PowerCo battery gigafactory in Sagunto delayed by three months
PowerCo has pushed back the start of battery cell production at its Sagunto plant to late 2026, three months later than planned, as part of Volkswagen group's wider strategic adjustment.
PowerCo confirmed to news agency EFE that the first cells will not roll off the Sagunto production line in September as announced: the date has moved to late December 2026, a three-month delay on the original schedule. The factory, located in the Parc Sagunt II industrial estate, says construction work remains on track; only the start of cell manufacturing is being pushed back.
PowerCo frames the change as part of Volkswagen's wider restructuring: on 9 July, the group announced it would cut global production capacity to a cap of 9 million vehicles a year. The Sagunto plant is one of three PowerCo battery gigafactories - alongside Salzgitter (Germany) and St. Thomas (Canada) - with combined capacity of up to 200 gigawatt-hours a year and more than 2,000 employees worldwide; Salzgitter, the first to launch, began cell production on 17 December. Despite the delay, PowerCo (Volkswagen's battery subsidiary) says it remains committed to Sagunto as a European hub for electric vehicles, with thousands of direct and indirect jobs expected for the Camp de Morvedre district. According to El Periódico de Aquí, with official figures from PowerCo.