Volkswagen, Europe’s largest carmaker, is reportedly preparing one of the biggest restructuring efforts in its history — with up to 100,000 jobs, out of a current global workforce of roughly 657,000, potentially cut over the coming years.

According to German media reports, the figure would double a previous, already significant redundancy target. CEO Oliver Blume has reportedly presented the restructuring plan, part of a broader strategy dubbed “Vision 2030,” to the company’s executive board.

Four German sites are said to be under threat of closure in the medium term: VW plants in Hanover, Emden, and Zwickau, along with the Audi site in Neckarsulm. If confirmed, the closures would mark a significant blow to Germany’s traditional industrial heartlands, several of which depend heavily on auto manufacturing jobs.

The move comes as German carmakers broadly struggle with a mix of pressures: high energy costs, intensifying competition from Chinese electric vehicle makers, and the costly, ongoing transition away from combustion engines.

For a company that has long been treated as a bellwether for German industry overall, this restructuring adds to a broader narrative of a manufacturing sector under real strain — even as other parts of the German economy, like tech startups, are posting record growth.