Stellantis, SAP and Henkel suspend business activities in Russia

Berlin (dpa) – German companies Henkel and SAP joined Stellantis, owner of major carmakers like Chrysler, Opel and Citroën, in suspending production in Russia on Tuesday as Moscow’s war on Ukraine continues.

Stellantis announced on Tuesday in Amsterdam that production in Kaluga, south of Moscow, will be halted due to Western sanctions on Russia, which are intensifying daily, and logistical difficulties.

This step was necessary to comply with the sanctions and to protect employees, Stellantis said.

According to a company spokesperson, Stellantis had already announced an export ban on vehicles from the plant at the beginning of March, shortly after the war began. Production had continued at a low level, the spokesperson said.

Before the war, commercial vehicles like the Citroën Jumpy were produced at the site. The company said it condemned violence and supported all actions aimed at restoring peace.

Meanwhile software provider SAP published a statement detailing further steps “for the ordered exit from our Russian business.”

SAP had already suspended its cloud and new businesses in Russia.

SAP had offered its clients in Russia who were not directly under western sanctions the options of deleting their data, giving them their data to manage themselves, or keeping their data in servers outside of Russia.

Now, the third option is due to expire. Businesses that decided to let SAP manage their data from abroad will not be able to extend their contracts after their subscription runs out.

Furthermore, SAP will no longer provide customer support or maintenance for products installed on local servers in Russia. The company said it is working on implementing these decisions without falling short of their legal responsibilities towards their clients.

Chemical and consumer goods company Henkel also announced it would work on halting all its activities in Russia.

Henkel, which owns brands such as Persil and Schwarzkopf, had long hesitated to halt business in Russia. After the onset of the invasion of Ukraine, Henkel suspended investment, advertising and sponsoring in Russia, but continued production.

Henkel boss Carsten Knobel had justified the decision saying that the assets of foreign companies might be seized by the Russian state if they suspend their activities.

On Tuesday, however, the company announced plans for an orderly exit from all activities in Russia.

The company’s 2,500 employees in Russia will continue to be employed and paid while the details of the withdrawal are organized, Henkel said. The company said it could not yet quantify the financial consequences of the decision.