VW's battery plants will have less capacity due to EV sales slump

Volkswagen has decided to cut back its EV battery cell plant plans given the recent sales slump for EVs. The company is scaling back its developments in Europe and North America, and will reevaluate in the future based on how the EV market evolves.

VW announced in 2021 that it would have six battery cell plants by 2030 with a combined annual production capacity of 240 GWh. Two sites in Europe are already under construction, in Salzgitter, Germany, and in Valencia, Spain.

Production w ill start at the former in 2025 and the latter in 2026. Additionally, early works are underway at a third site in Ontario, Canada. The current plan is for only these three facilities to be built, out of the six initially planned. They will have a combined capacity of 170 GWh.

If necessary, the sites in Valencia and Ontario can be expanded to make the total 200 GWh by 2030, but that of course depends on how EV demand will fluctuate in the next few years.

VW is currently staying mum about what type of batteries it will make - lithium iron phosphate (LFP) or nickel manganese cobalt (NMC). The former are cheaper and thus key to making EVs more affordable. VW is also planning to start producing solid-state batteries this decade.

Via