BMW may reverse Mini out of UK following Brexit
The German automaker is preparing for “different scenarios” in response to the UK’s planned exit from the EU, and has the leeway to move output elsewhere if necessary, it said yesterday. While most Minis are made in Oxford some of the urban brand’s models are already produced in the Netherlands and other facilities could also handle assembly.
“Our production network offers us flexibility,” chief executive Harald Krueger said at BMW’s annual press conference in Munich. Nevertheless, “the UK remains an important location for us. Much will depend on how Brexit is ultimately negotiated.”
Carmakers are concerned Brexit may lead to costly trade barriers, hampering the free movement of components and vehicles between production sites and end consumers across Europe. Production of the Mini could move to BMW’s plant in Born in the Netherlands, where some versions are already being made, or to Leipzig in Germany, where 1-Series compact autos are rolled out based on a similar platform.
BMW has owned Mini and its other iconic British brand, Rolls-Royce, for about two decades. In addition to the Oxford site it also has facilities in Goodwood and Hams Hall. The Munich-based manufacturer employs about 18,000 across the UK and exports about £2.4bn (€2.76bn) of vehicles and parts from the country.
While it’s too early to change operations there since Brexit terms are still being negotiated, the company is hoping for “a tariff-free environment and a legal equilibrium,” BMW’s head of sales Ian Robertson said at the press conference. The Brexit comments come as the German carmaker’s overseas operations become increasingly vulnerable to a possible clampdown on free trade. US President Donald Trump criticised BMW for planning to make cars at a $1bn factory it’s building in central Mexico, and threatened the automaker with a 35% duty on its imports to the US.
Despite these threats, BMW is pushing ahead with plans to roll out 3-Series models at the San Luis Potosi plant starting in 2019. Mr Krueger was among the German business leaders who accompanied Chancellor Angela Merkel during her first visit with President Trump at the White House last week. During the meeting, the president reprised his complaints that the US had been treated “very, unfairly” by its German trade partners.
