The supplier landscape in Germany and Austria is shifting fast: site closures and job cuts sit alongside fresh industrial investments and new supply contracts that bind Austrian plants more tightly into European EV and hydrogen value chains. For drivers, dealers and employees this means changing local job prospects and new parts and energy suppliers for future cars.
Closure and cuts: the human cost
Mexico‑owned Nemak confirmed on 22 April 2026 that it will close its aluminium‑casting plant in Herzogenburg (Lower Austria), discontinuing production “by the end of the first quarter of 2027” and affecting about 330 employees.
That announcement follows other workforce reductions in the Austrian supplier base: ZKW confirmed a programme that will eliminate around 600 jobs in Lower Austria by the end of 2027, concentrated at Wieselburg and Wiener Neustadt. The company said the cuts form part of a global efficiency plan under which some 2,300 positions worldwide will be removed.
Investments, contracts and localised production
At the same time, targeted investments are strengthening some Austrian supplier sites. AT&S announced an Fehring investment programme announced on 26 February 2026 worth more than €30 million through March 2027, split across semiconductor‑test production (about €8.8m), an approximately €10m inverter project for e‑mobility where AT&S acts as sole supplier to a German premium OEM, €7m for new production technologies and roughly €4m for sustainability measures. The company also reported new hires and plans for further local recruitment.
Contract manufacturing is also reshaping supplier flows: Magna’s Graz plant has entered series assembly for GAC’s AION models, with the AION UT rolling off the Graz line in March 2026 as part of GAC and Magna’s localisation push in Europe. That production brings assembly and upstream supplier demand to Austria and underlines how contract manufacturers can channel new OEM business into local supplier networks.
