Listen to Schaefer

Local automotive operations tend to wind themselves up into a funk when the global boss flies in. It’s even common for local factories to enjoy a hurried lick of paint. Volkswagen’s Thomas Schaefer doesn’t quite fit the stentorian archetype of the terrifying German car CEO; last week VWSA’s former boss flew in on a Lufthansa A380 and greeted his erstwhile SA colleagues like old friends.

Schaefer’s affinity for SA makes his comments about the outlook for automotive production here even more alarming. “The ports are stuck, you can’t get the materials in, we have to cancel shifts because there is no electricity, the market is not doing all that great,” he said. “Eventually you have to say, ‘why are we building cars in a less competitive factory somewhere far away from the real market where the consumption is?’ I’m very worried about it ... We’re not in the business of charity.”

News on Thursday that the cabinet approved a white paper will hopefully address industry concerns about outdated regulatory infrastructure that does not accommodate the manufacturing of electric vehicles, despite bans on internal combustion in the country’s key export markets due in the coming years.

But spiralling chaos at the ports and tectonic reform at Eskom are hammering our industries ask the 3,500 workers from ArcelorMittal SA, whose jobs are likely to be lost because of Transnet’s dysfunction. Schaefer speaks for all industries. The government needs to listen and act without delay.