Volkswagen to Invest in Mines to Become Global Battery Supplier

The member of Volkswagen’s board who is in charge of technology stated that the automaker intends to make investments in mines to reduce the cost of battery cells, satisfy half of its own demand, and sell to third parties. Thomas Schmall said that the biggest carmaker in Europe wants PowerCo to become a global battery supplier instead of just producing batteries for Volkswagen’s needs.

Thomas Schmall added that PowerCo will begin by providing Ford with cells for the 1.2 million vehicles that the American automaker is building in Europe on Volkswagen’s electric MEB platform. According to Thomas Schmall, Volkswagen intends to construct enough cells in Europe and North America to meet half of its global battery requirements in the long run.

The automaker was working on supply agreements with mining companies in Canada, where it will construct its first battery plant in North America. Thomas Schmall also said that Volkswagen would not disclose that information until the market was more settled. He also declined to comment on additional locations that are being considered or when Volkswagen might invest directly in mines.

There will be a small number of battery standards in the future. They want to be one of those standards through our large volume and third-party sales business, said Thomas Schmall.

In their efforts to make electric vehicles (EVs) affordable, automakers like Volkswagen, Tesla, and Stellantis face a major obstacle in the form of finding or manufacturing batteries at a reasonable cost.

According to reports, Volkswagen has pledged to invest more in battery production than Tesla has, despite the fact that Volkswagen, a manufacturer of electric vehicles based in the United States, is having difficulty increasing production and is seeking assistance from Asian suppliers.