Truck drivers faced long delays after Germany introduced tighter Covid-19 controls and immigration rules at the borders with Austria, the Czech Republic and Slovakia on Sunday in an attempt to prevent new variants of the virus from entering in the country. This is jeopardizing vital supply chains.
“If there are prolonged congestion at the borders due to testing and registration requirements, the supply chain is likely to collapse and production will be halted at many passenger car factories in Germany shortly after,” said Hildegard Müller, president of the German Association of Automotive industry.
Border controls were imposed after the outbreak of coronavirus variants in the Czech Republic and the Austrian region of Tyrol, which spread more rapidly than other strains. Traffic jams developed rapidly, with lines of vehicles waiting to extend up to 20 kilometers (12.4 miles) in an area south of Dresden on Monday.
“If the traffic situation at the border worsens and results in even longer queues, it will no longer be possible to rule out Volkswagen’s production restrictions,” a spokesman told CNN Business. “We generally see it as the task of politicians to ensure the free exchange of goods across national borders and to create clear regulations in exceptional circumstances like these.”
The company operates factories in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
The automotive industry plays a disproportionate role in Germany’s export economy, directly employing more than 880,000 workers in manufacturing, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers Association. German factories produced more than 4.6 million cars in 2019, representing more than a quarter of the EU total.
Volkswagen said last month that a shortage of computer chips would force it to adapt production at plants in China, North America and Europe this quarter. Audi laid off 10,000 workers.
Disruption of the supply chain
Serious border delays can also affect supply chains in other industries.
Joachim Lang, managing director of the German Federation of Industries (BDI), said in an interview with German editor Funke Mediengruppe that there could be problems across the continent.
“There is a great danger that supply chains will break across Europe in the coming days,” he warned.
Germany has been criticized by some of its neighbors for imposing border controls. Slovakian Foreign Minister Ivan Korčok said he had contacted his German counterpart to protest the demands for a negative coronavirus test for truck drivers.
“We request the waiver of the obligation for cargo drivers to present a negative test not exceeding 48 hours, when entering Germany. This measure will cause a major problem, as it is difficult for our drivers to comply with this requirement in practice, and it is very likely that it will trigger a chain reaction in other countries as well, “said Korčok.
Steffen Seibert, a spokesman for the German government, said on Monday that the checks are “about strong temporary border controls and not about closing the border”.
Peter Altmaier, the country’s economy minister, held a summit with 40 representatives of German industry on Tuesday to discuss measures against the coronavirus. Altmaier said after the meeting that he is in talks with his Austrian and Czech colleagues on ways to reduce waiting times at the border.