South Korean auto, electronics and battery manufacturers have become watchful of the epidemic developments in Europe, should they lead up to lockdowns and disrupt their manufacturing bases mostly located in the eastern region.

According to industry sources on Tuesday, the country’s backbone manufacturing sectors including auto, auto parts, electronics and battery have begun to build contingency plans against the worst-case scenario.

Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics have manufacturing lines for TVs and home appliance products in Slovakia, Hungary and Poland. All the factories are in normal operation for now.

“Currently the (virus) impact is limited, but we’re closely monitoring our distribution channels and inventory levels in preparation for possible damages if the virus situation lasts long,” said an official from one of the companies.

Automotive companies also are keenly watching the situation and taking stricter precautious measures to prevent factory shutdowns from the virus.

Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors run production plants in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, respectively, with an annual output of 300,000-350,000 finished vehicles in total. Their auto parts sister Hyundai Mobis also operates its production base near the plants along other Korean auto parts peers including Hankook Tire, Nexen Tire and Mando.

Although ripples have yet to reach their production, they have raised vigilance after major European companies such as Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV and Peugeot maker PSA Group have shuttered almost all factories in Europe to protect workers from the COVID-19 spread and due to parts supply shortage.

The workers’ union of Hyundai Motor’s Czech factory has called for a two-week voluntary shutdown for quarantine, reported news agency CTK on Monday (local time). But the factory so far will keep operation normal.

Korean battery makers that have recently ramped up production capacity of their factories in Europe in response to the fast-growing demand for electric vehicle (EV) batteries are also on alert. SK Innovation and Samsung SDI have manufacturing plants in Hungary, and LG Chem in Poland, all of which operate as normal for now.

That could change as global automakers including Volkswagen AG, Ford Motor and Nissan are considering a shutdown or already stopped production of their manufacturing lines in the region.

By Won Ho-sup, Chun Gyung-woon, Park Yun-gu and Lee Ha-yeon

[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]