A General Motors employee is working on December 13, 2019 at the carmaker’s plant in Wentzville, Missouri.
Photo by Melissa Vaeth for General Motors
General Motors will suspend production of its medium-sized trucks due to the continuing lack of semiconductor chips worldwide. It is the latest stop, as the carmaker prioritizes the production of larger and more profitable pickups and SUVs.
Downtime at the Missouri plant will begin Monday and run through April 12, according to a message to employees Wednesday at the local United Auto Workers union. Produces GMC Canyon and Chevrolet Colorado pickups. According to GM, the production of vans will not be affected.
GM will also continue the plant’s two-week downtime from May 24 to July 19 to “allow more time to build the product” in the second half of the year, the union said. GM spokesman David Barnas confirmed the plans.
In addition to the pickups, Barnas said GM will extend downtime at a car factory in mid-Michigan by two weeks until mid-April. GM has temporarily shut down or cut production at several factories that produce cars or crossovers to prioritize the production of full-size pickups and SUVs.
“GM continues to use every available semiconductor to build and deliver our most popular and sought-after products, including large trucks and SUVs to our customers,” he said in an emailed statement. “We did not take downtime and reduce shifts at any of our large truck factories due to shortages.”
Genetically modified plants in Kansas and Ingersoll, Ontario, which were closed in early February due to lack of chips are expected to remain closed at least until mid-April. Genetically modified plants in Brazil and South Korea have also been affected by the shortage. A Mexican factory is expected to reopen on April 5 after it closed on February 8.
GM’s actions are the latest as the auto industry tries to address the global chip shortage, after suppliers moved chips away from the car industry during plant shutdowns last spring due to Covid. The consulting firm AlixPartners estimates that the chip deficit will reduce revenues from the global automotive industry by $ 60.6 billion this year.
Semiconductor chips are extremely important components of new vehicles for infotainment, power steering and brake systems, among other systems. The parts can contain several sizes and different types of chips.
GM expects the lack of chips to cut $ 1.5 billion to $ 2.5 billion from its free cash flow in 2021.