Ford Romania To Halt Production For 8 Days In March-April

02.19.2014 By Florentina Dragu

Ford Motor Co. will suspend production for eight days at its Romanian plant during the March-April period because of weak market demand for its B-Max model, the company said Wednesday.

“Ford Romania continues to adjust production volumes in Craiova and will halt production for five days in March and three days in April, respectively,” Ford said in a statement.

The carmaker doesn’t expect any production stoppages at its engine line in the upcoming period. The US carmaker employs around 3,500 staff in Romania, where it produces the B-Max model and the 1-liter and 1.5-liter EcoBoost engines.

This is the second production halt in Craiova this year. In February, employees at the car division will not work for four days.

Last year, Ford stopped car production in Craiova for 35 days, while engine production was halted for a week.

Ford became the main shareholder in the Craiova-based plant in 2007, after it bought a 72.4% stake from the Romanian state in exchange for EUR57 million. Ford later increased its stake to over 90%.