Automotive Manufacturers GM & Volkswagen invest in China

General Motors and Volkswagen Group announce their latest investments in China

General Motors (GM) Invests US$300mn 

Investing aggressively into developing a comprehensive and highly integrated plan to lead the transformation to a more sustainable future, General Motors (GM) - guided by its vision of ‘a world with zero crashes, zero emissions and zero congestion’ - is investing US$300mn into Momenta. 

The investment into the leading autonomous driving technology will help GM to accelerate the development of next-generation self-driving technologies for future vehicles in China.  

 

“Customers in China are embracing electrification and advanced self-driving technology faster than anywhere else in the world, and the agreement between GM and Momenta will accelerate our deployment of next-generation solutions tailor-made for our consumers in China,” said Julian Blissett, executive vice president of General Motors and president of GM China. 

“Momenta is committed to developing breakthrough artificial intelligence solutions to push beyond the frontier of possibilities today and significantly improve personal mobility experiences. Together with GM, we will jointly invest in autonomous vehicle technologies to enhance driving safety, convenience and efficiency,” said Xudong Cao, CEO of Momenta.

With plans to invest US$35bn into engineering and capital in EV and AV technology between 2020 and 2025, GM plans to expand its design and engineering facilities for these technologies in China. In doing so, GM will dramatically increase its capability to deliver over-the-air software updates, its 5G connectivity services, and prepare the company for the rollout of its global Ultium Platform.

GM will collaborate with companies such as Momenta to build its capabilities as well as support diverse consumer choices around the world. Momenta’s vision over the next 10 years is ‘to save one million lives, save 100% driving time, and double the logistics and mobility efficiency. 

Volkswagen Begins Construction of Battery System Factory

Marking the first battery system plant wholly owned by the Volkswagen Group in China, the company has commenced the construction of a battery system production factory in Hefei. 

“Volkswagen Group's platform strategy is a competitive advantage which we are transferring into the e-mobility era. With a significant increase of battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) in the future, we need to focus on keeping key components like battery systems in our own value chain, allowing us to leverage Group-wide synergies and innovations. Volkswagen Anhui and VW Anhui Components Company, alongside our two strong Joint Ventures, are crucial to our electrification strategy and to achieving our goal of the Volkswagen Group China fleet reaching over 40% NEVs by 2030,” said Dr. Stephan Wöllenstein, CEO of Volkswagen Group China.

 

The initial annual capacity of the over 45,000 square metre factory - equal to 8.4 football fields- will produce 150,000 to 180,000 high-voltage battery systems for Volkswagen Anhui’s all-electric vehicles. Volkswagen Group China plans to invest over €140mn until 2025 into the new plant and its facilities, the start of production (SOP) is expected to commence in the second half of 2023.

“The development and production of battery systems is a crucial step on the way to achieving end-to-end responsibility for the battery. Thus, Anhui is an important pillar of our global battery strategy. The global strategy leads from vertical integration in the raw material market via building battery plants, as well as cell factories in collaboration with partners – amongst them the Chinese battery expert Gotion – to second life solutions and recycling. Currently, we are building up three MEB battery manufacturing facilities in Asia, Europe and the USA to be able to meet the growing demand for MEB battery systems in the future. Our blueprint factory in Braunschweig, Germany, is ready to produce up to 500.000 battery systems a year and is assisting in our capacity build-up with its expertise in planning, development and production,” added Thomas Schmall, Volkswagen Group Board Member for Technology and CEO of Volkswagen Group Components.

“With the new components plant in Anhui, the share of value-added by Volkswagen components in Volkswagen Anhui’s future electric vehicles will be about 40%. VW Anhui Components targets to be the providing system for our all-electric vehicles and the strategic backbone of our e-mobility offensive. This new component plant also provides a strong foundation for producing the next battery generations for the Chinese market,” concluded Frank Engel, Executive Vice President Components, Logistics, Quality at Volkswagen Group China.

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