Automark

BMW Group announced today that it has secured its long-term lithium-ion battery cell needs for upcoming plug-in electric cars.

The German manufacturer selected two manufacturers, with whom BMW had already partnered:

• Chinese Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited (CATL)
• South Korean Samsung SDI

In total, BMW ordered more than €10 Billion ($11 Billion) worth of cells by 2031.

In the case of CATL, BMW Group increases the previously announced (in mid-2018) order of €4 billion to €7.3 billion.

€4.5 billion will fall directly on BMW Group, while the remaining €2.8 billion will be used by the Chinese joint venture BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd. (BBA) joint venture in Shenyang.

To fulfill the contract (2020-2031), CATL is building its first European manufacturing plant in Erfurt, Germany.

The original CATL order volume of four billion euros announced in mid-2018 will now be increased to 7.3 billion euros (contract duration from 2020 to 2031), with 4.5 billion euros for the BMW Group and 2.8 billion euros for the Chinese production site of the BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd. (BBA) joint venture in Shenyang. The BMW Group is the first customer of the CATL battery cell plant currently under construction in Erfurt, Germany. “We strongly supported and played an active part in establishing CATL in Germany,” said Dr. Andreas Wendt, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG responsible for Purchasing and Supplier Network.

In the case of Samsung SDI (the main supplier for BMW so far), the supply contract was extended from 2021 to 2031. The deal is worth €2.9 billion.

“The BMW Group has also signed a long-term supply contract for its fifth-generation electric drive trains with its second battery cell supplier, Samsung SDI. The contract, with value of 2.9 billion euros, extends from 2021 to 2031. “In this way, we are securing our long-term battery cell needs. Every cell generation is awarded in global competition to the leading manufacturer from both a technology and a business perspective. This ensures we always have access to the best possible cell technology,” Wendt announced at a supplier event today in Seoul, South Korea.”

BMW intends to use CATL and Samsung SDI batteries in the upcoming fifth-generation electric drive trains, from 2021 on.

Additionally, BMW intends to directly source cobalt and lithium, which will then be made available for CATL and Samsung SDI.

“The BMW Group will source the cobalt needed as a key raw material for cell production directly from mines in Australia and Morocco and make it available to CATL and Samsung SDI. The same applies to lithium, which the BMW Group will also source directly from mines, including from Australia. This gives the company full transparency over where both raw materials come from. Compliance with environmental standards and respect for human rights have the highest priority. The BMW Group’s fifth-generation electric drive trains from 2021 on will also be produced entirely without using rare earths. “This means we will no longer be dependent on their availability,” explained Wendt.”

The battery cells from the supplier are used to assemble the modules and packs at several BMW plants:

1. Dingolfing, Germany
2. Spartanburg, USA
3. Shenyang, China, at the BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd. (BBA) plant
4. Thailand, in partnership with the Dräxlmaier Group, one of its long-term automotive suppliers.

Together with the all-new R&D facility in Munich, and additional partnership deals with Northvolt and Umicore, BMW has in place a strong foundation for mass-electrification.

“The BMW Group possesses extensive in-house expertise throughout the entire value chain for battery cell technology. In-house battery production takes place at BMW Group Plants Dingolfing (Germany) and Spartanburg (USA), and at the BBA plant in Shenyang (China). The BMW Group has also localised battery production in Thailand and is working with the Dräxlmaier Group in this area.

On 14 November, the company opened its Battery Cell Competence Centre in Munich. The aim of the competence centre is to advance battery cell technology and introduce it into production processes. The company invested a total of 200 million euros in the location, which is set to create up to 200 jobs. The production of battery cell prototypes makes it possible to analyse and fully understand cell value creation processes. “Whether we then produce the cells ourselves at a later date, will largely depend on how the supplier market develops,” according to Wendt.

The BMW Group has formed a joint technology consortium with Swedish battery manufacturer Northvolt and Umicore, a Belgian developer of battery materials, for the purpose of developing the cell technology crucial to electromobility. The cooperation will focus on creating a complete, sustainable value chain for battery cells in Europe, extending from development and production all the way to recycling. Recycling of battery components plays a decisive role in closing the materials cycle as far as possible and maximising reuse of raw materials as demand for battery cells grows.”

The plan for 2023 is to offer 25 plug-in electric models, out of which more than half will be BEVs.

Courtesy: InsideEVs

The government is set to launch electric buses in the country to combat air pollution.

As per details, the federal government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with private ride-hailing service to introduce electric vehicles in the country.

The MoU was signed by Minister of Science and Technology Fawad Hussain Chaudhary and CEO of bus hailing service in Islamabad on Tuesday, according to Radio Pakistan.

Under the MoU, the company will introduce electric battery-powered buses and also spend 12 billion rupees to expand its transport bus service in the country.

The federal cabinet meeting, held on November 4, had given approval to the draft policy of electric motor vehicles.

Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhary stated that the government is planning to earn approximately Rs. 10 billion through the use of green technology in the coming few years. He praised the Airlift team for their idea stating:

“These youngsters have pursued this entrepreneurship idea and have managed to raise funding for it. I always tell young people to focus more on entrepreneurship than seeking jobs.”

Currently, Airlift is offering its services in Lahore and Karachi whereas other metropolitan cities will also be targeted soon as part of their expansion plan.

Hyundai confirms it will put first pickup, the Santa Cruz, into production at Alabama plant in 2021.Hyundai handout

After an unexpectedly long delay, Hyundai has given the go to build a new compact pickup truck, a version of the Santa Cruz concept from the 2015 Detroit Auto Show, at its Montgomery, Alabama assembly plant.

Finding a place to build Santa Cruz was one of the biggest challenges delaying the project, according to a senior Hyundai official. The automaker will spend $410 million to expand the Montgomery plant which, in recent years, has struggled to keep up with demand for Hyundai products like the newly redesigned Santa Fe SUV. Adding Santa Cruz will create 200 direct jobs at the plant and another 1,000 for regional suppliers, the Korean carmaker said Wednesday.

If Santa Cruz were built today, it would become the smallest pickup on the market. With it, several Hyundai officials have said, they hope to recreate at least some of the success classic compact trucks, like the 1970s-era Chevrolet Luv, had attracting first-time baby boom buyers.

Pickups, on the whole, make up a massive segment of the U.S. automotive market with three full-size models: the Ford F-150, Chevrolet Silverado and Ram 1500 topping the sales charts year after year. Midsize models like the Toyota Tacoma, had been losing momentum since the 1980s but began rebounding early this decade with the launch of new offerings such as the Chevy Colorado and, more recently the Jeep Gladiator.

But it was the now-abandoned compact truck segment that proved wildly popular when boomers were getting their first set of wheels, models like the Luv proving rugged, affordable and cheap to operate. The Hyundai Santa Cruz hopes to tap into a similar target audience, though it is being position as “more of a lifestyle, urban commuter vehicle,” said the executive with Hyundai Motor America, than a rugged, go-anywhere product.

That’s because it will be based on a car-like crossover platform, rather than a traditional, body-on-frame truck chassis. Only one other pickup uses that approach, the large Honda Ridgeline.

“They may be tapping into something,” said Stephanie Brinley, principle automotive analyst with IHS Automotive told CNBC.

But how successful the Santa Cruz will be depends on several factors, including pricing and Hyundai own volume targets, said Brinley, cautioning that if the truck comes in somewhere in the low $20,000 it could have a large audience, “but if it winds up at $34,000, that won’t be the type of vehicle that appeals to a college kid,” as the compact trucks of decades past once did.

Hyundai hasn’t said what sort of numbers it is gunning for, but Brinley said she didn’t think hitting 30,000 a year would be a problem.

One of the questions is whether the Korean carmaker has waited too long to bring Santa Cruz to market. The company insider said it will likely be at least another 18 months before it can go into production, which would mean more than six years after the concept debuted to much acclaim at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

“We have so much on our plate (and) there were other priorities over the last several years,” such as mainstream models like the latest Santa Fe, a ranking Hyundai insider said on background Wednesday afternoon. “One of the big challenges was figuring out where we could build it.”

Another question is whether the production pickup will retain the unique bed extender that could stretch its cargo bed by more than an extra foot when necessary. The company insider would only tell CNBC that potential buyers “can expect to see something different with the tailgate.”

Just as the long-fading midsize truck market rebounded spectacularly over the past five years, the compact segment could also rebound, especially if Hyundai shows some success. Ford has already said it is working on an even smaller model than the midsize Ranger nameplate it revived last year. Volkswagen showed off a possible compact model in concept form at the New York International Auto Show last April and, said Brinley, she would expect that the Fiat brand might make a play at the segment, as well.

Courtesy: CNBC