Belgium Ford Plant Closes After 50 Years

Dec 29, 2014 01:00 PM EST | Matt Mercuro

Ford produced its last car at the automaker's Genk, Belgium plant on Thursday, marking the end of a facility that produced nearly 14 million vehicles over the past 50 years.

Ford's foreign facility built the Galaxy, Mondeo and S-Max vehicles in recent years.

It was announced back in 2012 that the plant would shut down and production of new models would relocate to Valencia, Spain.

"It seems so unreal. I think I'll only notice after the holidays. It's winter time, you're at home and have no idea what to do. That's when it will hit," said 60-year-old Rudi Beys on his way to one of his final shifts, adding he felt too young to retire, according to a Reuters report.

At the time, the plant had approximately 4,000 employees. The plants closure is expected to affect a lot more jobs than that however.

A study from the University of Hasselt revealed that the closure of the plant will cost around 11,800 jobs in the region. Ford suppliers will also have to make layoffs as well.

The final car to roll off the production line on Christmas Day was a white Galaxy van. The vehicle was emblazoned with the signatures of factory employees. It will be donated to a charity at a later date.

The final shift took place at 8 a.m. EST, according to Reuters. A couple hundred people will be kept for a few months in order to dismantle assembly lines.

"The proposed restructuring of our European manufacturing operations is a fundamental part of our plan to strengthen Ford's business in Europe and to return to profitable growth," said Stephen Odell, chairman and CEO of Ford of Europe, back in October, 2012. "We understand the impact this potential action would have on our work force in Genk, their families, our suppliers and the local communities."

Belgium now has just two vehicle assembly plants left. The remaining plants include Audi in Brussels and Volvo Cars in Ghent.

Opel also closed a plant in Antwerp back in 2010, according to Reuters.

Ford agreed two years ago to pay approximately €144,000 ($175,450) for each of the full-time workers to be laid off.

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