Vauxhall Ellesmere Port shutdown as car sales slump

Oct 8 2008 by Liam Murphy, Liverpool Daily Post

Vauxhall workers hope the new Astra will be built at Ellesmere Port (200)

A DRAMATIC drop in car sales across Europe means Vauxhall’s Ellesmere Port plant will cease production for 18 days this month.

For two days this week and two next week followed by 14 days from October 20 the factory which employs 2,200 staff will stop making cars.

And the company has said it cannot rule out further breaks in production in November and December.

The shutdowns will mean 9,000 fewer vehicles produced at the site which earlier this year had been calling staff in to work extra hours to meet increased demand.

It follows last month’s announcement that Jaguar Land Rover’s Halewood plant will close for a week after a fall in orders.

Halewood’s seven-day shutdown from October 27 follows three non-production days during September.

Across Europe, Vauxhall’s parent company, General Motors, has said it plans to reduce production by 40,000 vehicles as sales slump in the face of the current economic downturn.

General Motors’ sites in Germany, Poland, Luton and Spain are all being affected.

Vauxhall spokesman Dennis Chick said Ellesmere Port had been particularly hit by a drop in export demand, with one of its biggest markets, Spain, badly hit by the credit crunch and falling property values.