future for qhl

Hopefully QHL can get some of this action too.

By MarketWatch

German car maker BMW (BMW.XE) and carbon fiber producer SGL Carbon SE (SGL.XE) plan to invest more than 100 million euros ($137 million) to double joint production of carbon fiber to 6,000 metric tons a year from 3,000 tons a year now, German newspaper Handelsblatt reports Monday.

The investment will help the companies expand production in Germany and the U.S. in response to growing demand expected for BMW's electric i3 and i8 cars, the report says. Additionally, BMW intends to use carbon fiber for its planned 7 series model, expected to launch by the end of 2015, making it significantly lighter than its predecessor models with markedly lower carbon dioxide emissions, report says.

BMW and SGL Carbon spokesmen separately confirmed that they are expanding production to tackle the expected higher demand for carbon fibers, but didn't provide further details.

BMW's spokesman didn't comment on the 7 series model specifically, but said the company planned to use carbon fiber-reinforced plastics in other BMW models in the future, excluding the i-series and M-models.

BMW entered a joint venture with SGL Carbon in 2009 to manufacture carbon fibers and fabrics for the automotive industry and currently owns a more than 15% stake in the producer of lightweight carbon materials.