Volkswagen and Bosch set up a joint venture to provide battery equipment solutions

According to foreign media reports, Volkswagen Group and Bosch said in a joint statement on January 18 that the two companies plan to set up a joint venture by the end of this year to supply equipment to battery factories and help Europe become self-sufficient in battery production.

Volkswagen said the joint venture would provide battery production systems, providing all the processes and components needed for mass production of battery units and systems. Second, the joint venture will also help battery manufacturers expand their production scale and maintain their production base. However, the two companies did not disclose how much money will be invested in the joint venture.

The joint venture will serve battery factories across Europe. The number of European battery factories is growing exponentially as the European Union demands to reduce its dependence on Asian battery supplies. Therefore, the demand for battery equipment in the whole industry is also huge.

According to the European Battery Union ((European Battery Alliance,EBA), so far, Europe's known battery capacity is slightly less than 900 GWh,. By 2029, Europe will account for about 16% of the world's total battery capacity. But EBA said Europe would account for 1/3 of global battery capacity by 2030 to reduce its dependence on Chinese and South Korean suppliers.

Thomas Schmall, head of Volkswagen Technology, said in a statement, "in the next few years, Europe will have only one chance to win a dominant position in the global battery competition. We will build a complete and localized supply chain for 'made in Europe' electric cars. "

Volkswagen plans to build six battery plants in Europe by 2030 with an annual capacity of 240 GWh, to control the supply chain as much as possible. Volkswagen's battery plant plan is a key step for Volkswagen to overtake Tesla to become the world's largest seller of electric vehicles. Volkswagen CEO Herbert Deiss (Herbert Diess) has said Volkswagen's battery division is expected to generate revenue of 20 billion euros ($22.7 billion) by 2030.

For Bosch, the move will strengthen its role in the transition to electric cars. Compared with cars with internal combustion engines, it takes fewer steps and labor to build electric vehicles, so for many suppliers, the transition to electric vehicles poses a threat to their survival. Bosch has decided not to invest in battery production in the past, believing that the early investment is too large.