In Salzgitter, Volkswagen started producing its own battery cells for electric cars. The Group is already investing more than one billion euros in the project in the pilot phase.
Silas stone / DPA
Volkswagen launches production of battery cells for e-cars at its Salzgitter plant (archive image)
Monday, 23.09.2019
12:45
Volkswagen enforces his Plans for own battery cell production For electric cars, At the Salzgitter location, the Group has opened a pilot facility for battery production for small batches.
With this VW wants first experiences Collect to expand the cell production piece by piece. By the turn of the year 2023/24 more than one billion euros will be invested in the pilot phase. Thereafter, a Northvolt-operated cell factory is scheduled to commence operation.
At the newly opened research center in Salzgitter, around 300 experts are developing, testing and testing production processes for the production of lithium-ion batteries. For this purpose, the Group is investing more than one hundred million euros in the first step. From 2020, a battery cell factory with a capacity of 16 gigawatt hours is to be built at the same location.
By 2024, more than a thousand jobs will be created
The production start is planned for the turn of the year 2023/2024. By then, more than a thousand jobs will be created, 700 of them in a joint venture with Northvolt. Also in Salzgitter in the coming year, a pilot plant for recycling of batteries in operation.
“By bundling the competencies at the site, we ensure that we can advance the further development of battery cells as a key component of electrification ourselves and quickly put into mass production,” said VW procurement director Stefan Sommer.
A separate cell production was previously too expensive for the German car manufacturer, they bought the components of suppliers, especially from Asia.