Auto
Volkswagen Stops Production Over Fight With Supplier
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Production of Passat by Volkswagen has been halted due to an ongoing battle between the company and one of its suppliers.
This problem has affected Volkswagen AG factories in Germany. The supplier, which VW fails to mention, cuts off the automaker as they fight in court and engage in a public war of words about who’s to blame for the impasse.
VW stopped Passat production on Thursday and will halt assembly of its best-selling Golf on Monday if the conflict isn’t resolved.
Bloomberg said VW has officially said the factories producing those models face slowdowns, as do plants that build chassis, the basic underpinnings of vehicles.
The supplier has essentially called the automaker a bully, prompting VW’s top labour boss to respond that he’s “furious” and the leader of its home state to say “coercive measures” by a court may be needed to end the conflict.
The production holdup threatens to reduce Volkswagen’s earnings by as much as 40 million euros ($45 million) a week — according to Christian Ludwig, an analyst at Bankhaus Lampe — at a time when the carmaker is trying to boost sagging profit at its namesake brand by lowering annual spending by one billion euros.
The conflict centres on a contract that VW signed with the supplier, then later cancelled.
The parts maker, which builds seat and transmission parts, says it wants the auto manufacturer to pay for the plant alterations it made to provide the services.
“This is the most extreme case of escalation between a supplier and a carmaker that I’ve heard of,” said Stefan Bratzel, a director at the Centre of Automotive Management in Bergisch Gladbach, Germany. “There have been court cases in the past, but not a supplier stopping deliveries during series production.”
Volkswagen shares fell 1.5 percent to a two-week low of 119.90 euros at the close in Frankfurt. The stock has declined 10 percent this year, valuing Europe’s biggest carmaker at 62.4 billion euros.
Prevent Group’s Car Trim seat-component division and ES Automobilguss transmission-parts unit suspended deliveries after Volkswagen rejected discussions to reimburse the supplier when the new contract was dropped, the parts manufacturer said in a statement.
The cancelled order involved a 500 million-euro deal with Car Trim that was scheduled to start next year, said a person briefed on the supplier’s business, who asked not to be named discussing the legal case.
A German court last week ordered the suppliers to resume deliveries, and an appeal in one of the cases has been set for August 31.
VW in the meantime has asked the court to fine the suppliers and allow the automaker to go to their factories and load up the parts on its own, the court in Braunschweig said in a statement. The parts makers have until next week to respond, and the court will decide then on VW’s request, according to the release.
Christoph Adomat, a VW spokesman, didn’t respond to phone calls and e-mails Friday seeking comment.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
A bill aimed at prohibiting hawking, trading or preaching inside commercial vehicles in Nigeria has been passed by the Senate.
The bill known as the Federal Road Safety Corps (Amendment) Bill, 2026, imposes fines between N50,000 and N100,000 for violations if assented to by the President.
The piece of legislation was passed by the red chamber of the National Assembly on Thursday and should later be transmitted to President Bola Tinubu for assent.
Members of the upper chamber of the parliament explained that the law was amended to discourage distractions in commercial vehicles and improve the safety of commuters.
In addition, motorists who fail to cooperate with officials of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) during roadside breath tests conducted on reasonable suspicion are liable to fines or imprisonment or both.
Lawmakers noted that this was to improve compliance with road safety regulations and reduce road crashes, as fines for driving under the influence of alcohol or intoxicating drugs were raised to N100,000 from N5,000, with the risk of spending two years behind bars.
It was also proposed that disobedience to traffic lights, road signs, pavement markings and other traffic control devices will now attract N100,000, while the fine for speed limit violations is now N100,000, with reckless driving now a fine of N100,000 or two years’ imprisonment.
By Dipo Olowookere
Residents and motorists plying the Aina Obembe Road in Baruwa, Ipaja, Lagos, may soon heave a sigh of relief as the excruciating traffic gridlock being experienced in the area both day and night may soon be a thing of the past.
This is because the chairman of Ayobo-Ipaja LCDA, Mr Lukmon Agbaje, has directed those involved in indiscriminate truck parking along the road to remove the heavy-duty vehicles within one week, threatening to invoke appropriate enforcement measures for noncompliance with this directive.
Speaking during a meeting on Wednesday with the management of SENA Company, which owns the affected trucks, as well as the leadership of Oluwadara CDA and other key stakeholders like the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), at the council’s secretariat, Mr Agbaje frowned at the prolonged inconvenience suffered by the community, stressing that public roads must remain accessible and safe for all users.
He emphasised the need for a collaborative approach in resolving the issue without undermining legitimate business operations, noting that he’s focused on finding a lasting solution to the gridlock experienced between Oluwaga and Aina Obembe, where parked trucks have continued to obstruct traffic, disrupt business activities, and pose safety concerns for residents and motorists.
He tasked the firm and the CDA to jointly identify and implement alternative parking arrangements that would remove all trucks from the affected roads and restore the free flow of traffic.
He declared that, “The welfare of our people remains our highest priority. No individual or corporate organisation should obstruct public infrastructure or create avoidable hardship for residents. We must ensure that economic activities coexist with public safety, order, and convenience.”
The council chief reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to promoting orderly development, ensuring safe and accessible roads, improving traffic management, and creating an environment where businesses can thrive alongside the well-being of residents.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The federal government has cut import levies on new and used vehicles by as much as 10 per cent in a move aimed at reducing the cost of vehicle importation, even as it commenced the implementation of a new Green Tax surcharge.
According to an update issued by the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) on Wednesday, the import levy on new vehicles has been reduced from 20 per cent to 10 per cent, while the levy on used vehicles has been slashed from 15 per cent to five per cent under the 2026 Fiscal Policy Measures, which took effect on July 1, 2026.
The customs said the policy is designed to ease the cost of vehicle imports while advancing the government’s environmental sustainability objectives through the newly introduced Green Tax.
The implementation also reduces the overall import duty on fully built passenger vehicles from 70 per cent to 40 per cent.
As part of the Green Tax framework, a new environmental surcharge of between two per cent and four per cent will apply to petrol-powered vehicles with engine capacities exceeding 2,000cc. However, mass transit buses, electric vehicles, and passenger cars with engines below 2,000cc are exempt from the surcharge.
Beyond the automobile sector, the fiscal measures also lower import duties on several essential goods. The duty on imported rice has been reduced from 70 per cent to 47.5 per cent, while crude palm oil now attracts a 28.75 per cent duty.
In addition, import duties on agricultural and manufacturing machinery have been completely removed to support local production, while Waste PET has been added to the export prohibition list to encourage domestic recycling.
