Dragos Grigore, Magna Exteriors Craiova: “The automotive industry in Europe needs higher subsidies to boost sales of electric vehicles”

“The stricter CO2 emission rules starting in 2025 come at a bad time for the automotive industry, which has faced a cocktail of crises in recent years. We know very well what happened with the pandemic, semiconductors, wars, inflation, etc. The automotive industry has been very resilient, but it has still been affected by all these crises.

2024 was a difficult year, especially because of the slowdown in electric car sales. We see new conflict zones around the world, and the cocktail of crises seems to be increasing. So, these emissions regulations, which will come into force in 2025, are somehow like the icing on the cake for the automotive industry,” Dragos Grigore, General Manager, Magna Exteriors Craiova said during Automotive Forum 2024 organized by Automotive Today and The Diplomat-Bucharest.

“In this context, we need to have a partnership with national and European authorities. The automotive industry in Europe needs to restructure, especially in the context of the development of the electric vehicle market and higher subsidies are needed to boost sales. We also need a more developed infrastructure, and perhaps a reinvention is needed from the manufacturers.

The tariffs introduced by the US and now Europe for electric cars produced in China put us on the defensive and we risk entering an economic war, and in this scenario no one wins. The solution is cooperation between governments and manufacturers to overcome this difficult period for the automotive industry.

Magna has a turnover of over 40 billion dollars, operates various business groups in the automotive industry, body elements, gearboxes, mirrors, electronics, seats, etc. Very important to mention, we are the only Tier 1 supplier that has the capacity to assemble cars at the factory in Austria, where BMW, Mercedes, Toyota, Jaguar models are produced.

How do we see the year 2025? It will be challenging. We are with our client in Craiova, who has ambitious plans and whom we support. Ford Otosan production in 2024 will be a record. One of the main directions for us is to support the accelerated growth of Ford Otosan in Romania.

Another priority is competitiveness. We have to remain competitive in 2025 in order to move forward successfully.”