Volkswagen aims to become the global leader in the electric vehicle industry by bringing a range of electric vehicles to market and routing them through the supply chain. The German car brand reportedly plans to become a global supplier of electric vehicle batteries and plans to invest in the mining industry, according to Reuters. Interestingly, this strategy is very similar to Tesla, the current leader in the global electric vehicle market.
Europe’s largest auto group plans to sell batteries to automakers such as Ford as part of its partnerships and to supply other brands in the future, the report said. Oliver Bleu, Volkswagen Group’s new chief executive, said last week that the automaker’s electric vehicle partnership with Ford was strengthening, contradicting statements that Ford does not want to rely on VW for long.
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The battery is the most expensive component in any electric vehicle. In fact, batteries account for nearly 50% of the total price of an electric vehicle. On the other hand, the demand for batteries continues to be driven by rising demand for electric vehicles. Economies of scale are expected to help lower battery costs as more automakers switch to electric vehicles.
Focusing on this, a growing number of companies are showing interest in mining and refining materials needed for electric vehicle batteries. Tesla has previously disclosed similar plans. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has been making this clear, and now Tesla is getting into the mining industry, and now Volkswagen has indicated that it wants to go the same route.
Volkswagen’s PowerCo battery division plans to grow exponentially in the future and supply electric vehicle batteries globally, according to reports. The unit aims to meet half of VW’s battery needs while selling the rest to competing brands globally, including Ford.
First published date: March 25, 2023 at 16:40 PM CST
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