The auto parts and components industry has faced headwinds, such as inflation, high interest rates, and consumer caution with discretionary spending, over the last two years that have forced manufacturers like Grupo Antolin to file for bankruptcy.
Major automobile parts and components company Grupo Antolin filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy seeking recognition of its Spanish restructuring plan as a foreign main proceeding to protect the debtor’s assets, rights, obligations, or liabilities in the United States.
The Burgos, Spain-based company, founded in 1950, filed for a Spanish insolvency proceeding with a restructuring plan on July 10, 2026, which the Spanish court accepted on July 17, according to court documents. The court is expected to approve the restructuring in late September or October 2026.
Grupo Antolin files Chapter 15 bankruptcy
Grupo Antolin, which generated €3.73 billion ($4.25 billion) in revenue in 2025, filed its Chapter 15 petition in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York in Manhattan on July 20, to facilitate the administration of the Spanish restructuring, protect its U.S. assets, and enforce the Spanish restructuring plan on any affected creditors, according to the petition.
The 75-year-old auto components and parts manufacturer supplies products for many of the world’s largest automobile manufacturers, including Ford Motor Company, General Motors, Stellantis, Volkswagen, Hyundai Motor Company, and Renault-Nissan.
Operates in 23 countries
Grupo Antolin operates 111 production plants and “just-in-time” delivery centers in 23 countries, employing 20,000 workers. In the U.S., the company operates 10 production plants, one technical-commercial office, and employs about 2,100 people nationwide.
The company plans to continue normal operations while it reorganizes, and the company did not indicate in court papers any plans to terminate employees.
“The Spanish proceeding allows the debtor’s business operations to continue, employees to be maintained, and liabilities to be restructured,” Foreign Representative Cristina Blanco Santo Tomás wrote in the petition.
The company supplies over 110 automotive brands and about 20 original equipment manufacturers, with its components included in over 500 vehicle models globally, including nine of the 10 best-selling vehicles worldwide, according to court papers.
Manufactures auto parts and components
Grupo Antolin manufactures automobile doors, instrument panels, central consoles, coatings, components for roofs, and electronic systems, including lighting, smart surfaces, human-machine interface systems, and sun visors, according to the petition.
Macroeconomic and geopolitical headwinds over the last six years that affected the automotive sector forced the company to pursue the Spanish restructuring and the Chapter 15 case, the petition said.
The debtor cited several factors as headwinds, including the Covid-19 pandemic temporarily disrupting vehicle production worldwide, the Ukraine war causing significant supply chain disruption and increased raw material and energy costs, and recent U.S. tariffs on European vehicles and auto components.
High debt obligations led to filing
The company’s high debt obligations and substantial loan maturities coming in 2027 and 2028 were also given as reasons for seeking the Spanish restructuring and Chapter 15 filing.
Grupo Antolin’s bankruptcy filing comes less than a year after major U.S. auto parts manufacturer First Brands Group filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas on Sept. 25, 2025.
First Brands filed its petition facing about $6 billion in debt, with over $4 billion in off-balance sheet liabilities related to customer invoice factoring and supply chain financing.
Among the products First Brands manufactures are Fram oil and air filters, Autolite spark plugs, Michelin wiper blades, Philips lighting, and Raybestos brake solutions.
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