With shares down following ‘dieselgate’, Volkswagen’s purported plans to build a multi-million dollar ‘Gigafactory’ battery plant has the whiff of Elon Musk’s self-promoting oratory.
But then, like Tesla, the German firm will need a strong supply of batteries if it is to meet its goal of selling a million electric vehicles by 2025.
And just like it’s North American contemporary, Volkswagen’s new plant would ensure an independent battery supply similar to Tesla’s deal with Panasonic, and away from manufacturers such as LG Chem (Daimler, Hyundai) and Samsung (JAC).
News that Volkswagen is considering building a multi-billion-euro battery factory as part of a major expansion of its electric-car portfolio, was broken by German business newspaper Handelsblatt.
The newspaper said it had learned from sources inside Volkswagen the company’s non-executive supervisory board would consider the plans before its annual meeting on June 22.
The company’s executive board looks likely to approve the plan, which is also supported in principle by the works council and the state of Lower Saxony, its major shareholder, sources told Handelsblatt.
The company is being rocked by a scandal known as “dieselgate” after it was found to have ‘cheated emissions tests’ in Europe and North America.
This new focus on battery technology and electric vehicles could help the company make a fresh start and improve its negative image.
