Volkswagen’s chief warned Tuesday the carmaker is reviewing its planned investments, but local officials remained upbeat about the company’s expansion at its Chattanooga assembly plant.
“There’s no reason to believe the plant won’t move forward,” said Hamilton County Mayor Jim Coppinger as the company continued work on a $600 million project to produce a new SUV that VW officials believe is key to U.S. sales.
The Rev. Jesse Jackson, in Chattanooga on Tuesday, weighed in on the VW emission-rigging issue, saying the company must make “strong corrective actions, but [the plant] must not be closed.”
“There’s more than 2,000 people who work here and own homes and businesses in Chattanooga, and we need those jobs,” the civil rights leader said. “The workers should not be punished because of some scheme concocted in Germany.”
In addition, Tennessee senators will hold a hearing in Chattanooga on Oct. 29 to review the financial impact, if any, on the state from VW’s violation of U.S. emissions standards with some of its vehicle diesel models.