Volkswagen secures 10-year lithium supply deal to accelerate...

Volkswagen secures 10-year lithium supply deal to accelerate electric vehicle production

By
Imelda Cotton
-
April 10, 2019
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Ganfeng will supply lithium to Volkswagen and its suppliers over the next ten years.

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Volkswagen Group has signed a 10-year supply agreement with China’s second largest lithium producer in a move that will underpin the manufacture of more than 70 pure electric vehicle models over the next decade.

The German auto giant this week announced it had entered into a memorandum of understanding with Ganfeng Lithium Co Ltd for the supply of a significant share of its lithium requirements for batteries to power more than 22 million vehicles within the model ranges, between now and 2030.

That figure is an increase on its original goal of 15 million and signifies the group’s aim to lead the market in electric mobility.

Group board member for procurement Dr Stefan Sommer said the Ganfeng agreement comes at a time of increasing demand for raw materials to fuel electric vehicle cell production.

“We must make sure we cover the demand at an early stage,” he said.
“Long-term agreements like the one we have just concluded [with Ganfeng] are of crucial strategic significance for implementing our electric offensive.”
Accelerating production

That offensive was unveiled last year at Volkswagen’s annual media conference in Berlin, when the Group – which owns 12 auto brands including Porsche, Audi, Bentley, Lamborghini, Seat, Skoda and Bugatti – detailed a strategy to accelerate the production of electric vehicles over the coming decade.

Key components would be an expansion of its assembly capacity to 16 plants globally by 2022 and the launch of a new electric vehicle model “virtually every month”, starting this year.

Fundamental to this strategy is the inking of battery supply agreements with partners in China and Europe to secure the lithium required by its production line.

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Volkswagen plans to be producing around 50 different battery-electric models across its 12 auto brands by 2025.
And with global demand for the light metal expected to more than double by 2023, it makes sense that Volkswagen would want to beat the rush.

https://*********.com.au/volkswagen-lithium-supply-deal-ganfeng-electric-vehicle-production/

Pretty much read Europe agreement to follow for the supply chain to secure expected rapid production expansion.