• FORVIA reported H1 2026 sales of €10.51 billion, down 4.3% year-on-year and 1.9% organically. • Operating income increased by 1.6% to €632 million, while the operating margin improved from 5.7% to 6.0%. • Performance varied sharply between business groups: Electronics and Clarion grew strongly, while Seating and Lighting recorded significant declines. • China remained particularly challenging, with FORVIA sales in the country falling 20.1% on a reported basis.
• Dacia has invested approximately EUR 4 billion in Romania, but the company’s management is warning about deteriorating conditions for industrial competitiveness. • Energy costs and the lack of a concrete strategy to reduce them are highlighted among the major challenges facing Romania’s automotive industry. • The issue is no longer only whether Mioveni can attract new models: Dacia management says it cannot currently confirm that the next generation of the Duster will continue to be produced in Romania. • The warning is relevant to the entire industrial ecosystem surrounding the plant, including suppliers of plastic components, compounds, masterbatch, moulds and industrial services.
• BMW, FORVIA HELLA, Covestro and other industrial and research partners have launched the KOLLEKT project to develop automotive components designed for circularity. • Automotive headlamps are being used as a model for developing a complete value chain based on Repair, Re-Use, Remanufacture and Recycle. • The project is developing a flexible robotic disassembly cell supported by artificial intelligence and digital product twins. • After disassembly, contaminants will be removed and different plastics fractions will be separated and characterised. • The project runs from June 2026 to May 2029 and is receiving EUR 4.371 million in funding from Germany's Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space.
• The new EU Regulation on end-of-life vehicles entered into force on 13 August 2026. • New vehicle types will have to contain at least 15% recycled plastic from post-consumer waste from September 2032. • The mandatory recycled plastic content will increase to 25% from September 2036. • At least 20% of the recycled plastic required to meet the target will have to come from end-of-life vehicles or vehicle parts and components. • From 2032, the EU will also introduce an annual recycling target for plastics contained in end-of-life vehicles. • The new rules will directly affect vehicle manufacturers, Tier suppliers, plastics processors, compounders and recyclers.
Related Plastinfo Analysis – Corporate Radar CR-001 Dacia Between Romania, Morocco and Türkiye Renault Group CEO François Provost has described the company's Romanian operations as having reached a "critical point", highlighting the growing challenges facing the European automotive industry. Following his visit to the Dacia Mioveni plant and Renault Technologie Roumanie (RTR), Provost stressed that improving competitiveness, strengthening engineering capabilities and expanding Dacia's domestic market presence are now strategic priorities for the Group.
• The new Dacia Striker will be manufactured at Renault's Oyak plant in Bursa, Türkiye. • Production is part of Renault's €400 million investment program at the Turkish facility. • Mioveni remains the production hub for the new Duster and Bigster models. • Renault has progressively distributed Dacia production between Romania, Morocco and Türkiye, assigning different roles to each plant. • The decision fuels debate over the future role of Romania within Renault Group's industrial strategy.
• Serbia continuă să fie una dintre cele mai atractive destinații pentru investițiile industriale din Europa de Sud-Est. • Țara a atras în 2018 cel mai mare volum de investiții greenfield raportat la PIB la nivel mondial. • Investitorii beneficiază de stimulente fiscale, terenuri pentru dezvoltare și investiții consistente în infrastructură. • Industriile auto, materialele de construcții și producția industrială se află printre principalele sectoare care atrag capital străin. • Modelul sârbesc este urmărit atent în regiune și intensifică competiția pentru atragerea noilor investiții.
• Around 25% of European automotive suppliers expect to report losses in 2026. • High costs, global competition and the transition to e-mobility are putting increasing pressure on the entire supply chain. • Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers are among the most exposed companies. • The European automotive industry is facing one of its most challenging periods in recent years. • The impact is also being felt across the plastics, technical components and recycling sectors.
The automotive industry continues to accelerate the integration of recycled materials into mass-produced vehicles, with the latest example coming from the collaboration between Covestro and Lexus.
A pilot run by the Global Impact Coalition — a coalition of BASF, Covestro, LG Chem, LyondellBasell, Mitsubishi Chemical Group, SABIC, Suez and Syensqo — confirms that plastics from end-of-life vehicles can be technically recovered and processed. The main barrier, however, is not technology: it is economic coordination and the absence of a functioning value chain across all actors involved.
The Global Impact Coalition (GIC), a CEO-led organisation of major chemical companies, has published the results of the first phase of its "Automotive Plastics Circularity" project in May 2026: plastics from end-of-life vehicles can be technically recovered and processed at scale, but commercial viability remains the industry's primary challenge.
The automotive industry is expanding the use of closed-loop recycling systems for plastics • Production scrap and materials recovered from End-of-Life Vehicles (ELVs) are being reintroduced into new automotive components • Automakers are targeting lower carbon footprints and higher circularity levels • Plastics remain essential for vehicle lightweighting and efficiency • Demand for high-quality recycling and material traceability continues to grow across the automotive sector
The European Union is easing proposed recycled content requirements for plastics used in automotive applications • The new proposed overall target is 20% recycled content • Out of this, 15% should come from End-of-Life Vehicles (ELV) recycling streams • Main reason: Europe’s recycling and supply infrastructure is not yet sufficiently developed • Industry stakeholders warn about shortages in sorting and high-quality recycling capacities for automotive plastics
Reinforced plastics are increasingly replacing metal in automotive applications • Glass fiber reinforced PA, PP, and PC offer weight reduction and high mechanical strength • Automakers are targeting higher efficiency and longer EV range • Structural supports, housings, front-end modules, and under-the-hood parts are already being produced from reinforced compounds • Demand for engineering compounds and high-performance materials continues to grow
Semnalele săptămânii pentru business-ul din plastice și componente auto Perioada: 15-22.04.2026 Focus: România - Europa (auto & componente)
👉 More than 30,000 jobs are being affected across European automotive suppliers 👉 Major companies such as Bosch, Continental AG and ZF Friedrichshafen have announced restructuring measures 👉 Electrification and declining orders are accelerating the shift 👉 Direct impact on the industrial supply chain, including plastics
The International Automotive Recycling Congress (IARC) 2026, starting on March 25 in Hamburg, highlights the growing importance of recycling in the European automotive industry. Bringing together up to 300 industry decision-makers, the event marks a critical step toward circularity, with an increasing focus on plastic materials.
The Council of the European Union and the European Parliament have reached a provisional agreement on new rules covering vehicle circularity and the management of end-of-life vehicles (ELVs). The framework includes requirements aimed at increasing the use of recycled materials, including recycled plastics, in the automotive sector.
A new European Commission report reveals that only 22% of plastics used in car manufacturing are currently recycled. Brussels now proposes legislative measures to increase recycled content and build a circular supply chain for automotive plastics across the EU.
The new ELV package introduces binding recycled content targets for plastics in vehicles, along with easier dismantling and Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)
The Chinese group Minth Holdings is making a strategic €950 million investment in Serbia, opening two new facilities in Leskovac and Ćuprija. The project is expected to generate 2,800 jobs and strengthen Serbia’s role as an emerging automotive hub in Central and Eastern Europe.
Toyota presented its first solid-state battery prototype, claiming a driving range of up to 1,200 km and ultra-fast charging under 15 minutes, planned for limited commercial production in 2027.
Within a single week, three German automotive suppliers – Huber Automotive, MVI Group, and SGF – filed for bankruptcy, threatening to disrupt car production.
MEPs propose that every new type of vehicle should contain at least 20% recycled plastic within six years after the regulation enters into force.
South Africa’s automotive sector is experiencing production cuts, plant closures, and workforce reductions due to heavy import reliance (64% of components) and missed 2035 masterplan targets.
The US automotive market is experiencing a slowdown in sales as new import tariffs take hold. Analysts predict vehicle prices could increase by 4–8% in the coming months, impacting the entire supply chain, including plastics used in automotive components.