Volkswagen says restart of some China plants postponed until Feb 17

BEIJING (Reuters) - Volkswagen <VOWG_p.DE> has postponed restarting production at most China plants in its joint venture with SAIC Motor <600104.SS> and the Tianjin plant in its JV with FAW Group [SASACJ.UL] until Feb. 17 amid the coronavirus epidemic.

One car-manufacturing plant Volkswagen operates with SAIC in Shanghai and most of the plants in the FAW joint venture will restart on Feb. 10, the German automaker said in an emailed statement on Saturday.

Volkswagen said it was facing supply chain challenges as China goes back to work after the extended Lunar New Year holiday, as well as limited travel options for its employees.

(Reporting by Yilei Sun and Tom Daly; editing by David Evans)