E-Tron at the Brussels Motor Show in January
Audi obtains its battery cells from the Korean supplier LG Chem.
Munich, Wolfsburg Audi must stop the production of his hope-bearing E-Tron. The assembly of the electric car in the Brussels plant was interrupted until Wednesdaythe automaker said on Friday. The group gives the reason Start-up difficulties when starting up production.
“Naturally, this brings with it various challenges that we master together with our development partners and suppliers,” explained the group. Audi has been producing the electric SUV in Brussels for half a year, last year around 25,000 units were built. But since the start of production there have been problems with the supply of battery cells.
Audi relates how Porsche and Mercedes got its cells from Korean supplier LG Chem, who built a plant in Poland for this. The production interruption in Brussels is now also on the lack of battery cells attributed, it was said in corporate circles.
Audi wants to build 80,000 E-Trons this year, but LG has so far only been able to promise 40,000 battery cells. So far, LG is the only cell supplier for Audi. The VWDaughter now hopes up Samsung – The Korean LG competitor is currently expanding its capacities in Hungary.
The temporary stop to production is annoying for Audi in several ways: Audi E-Tron customers already have to wait half a year for their car. If Audi doesn’t get a grip on the problem, the delivery time could increase further. The Ingolstadt are earlier with the E-Tron than the competitors Mercedes and BMW on the market.
The one seriously shaken by the diesel scandal VWSubsidiary wants to put thirty electric or hybrid models on the road by 2025, more than its competitors in Stuttgart and Munich are planning. In addition, electric cars are important for the VW Group’s carbon footprint. If it is not possible to sell enough electricity, the group has to pay the EU Commission fines.
The lack of cells affects the entire automotive industry
The Audi mother Volkswagen is not affected by this. “With us, the cell supply is going according to plan,” said a VW spokesman in Wolfsburg on Friday. Volkswagen is helped by the fact that sales of its new generation of electric vehicles have not yet started. The first copies of the new ID.3 should not be delivered to customers until late summer.
Unlike Mercedes or Audi, VW has a little more time. Nevertheless, Volkswagen is monitoring the situation in the battery cell market very closely. Because the lack of cells affects the entire automotive industry – and thus also the Wolfsburg vehicle manufacturer. At the VW plant in Zwickau, the new ID.3 is currently being produced in comparatively small numbers to prepare for the start of sales.
The batteries must be installed immediately, this is no longer technically possible. Volkswagen plans to significantly increase production of the new electric car in the coming months. Then the Wolfsburg-based automaker also needs more battery cells. “Of course we hope that an adequate supply will then be ensured,” added company circles.
In older models with an electric drive, the limited supply of battery cells is already noticeable. With the VW Mini E-Up, it can take up to seven months before a customer receives the new electric car he has ordered. Volkswagen has to deal with the tight cell contingent with its sister brands Seat and Skoda parts that offer almost identical small cars with electric drive.
Engineers from Volkswagen and Audi have traveled to Eastern Europe several times to help start up cell production in the new plants. VW developers have now also acquired the necessary battery know-how. They also master the large-scale production of cars.