BMW readies Mexican plant for assembly of high-voltage EV batteries

BMW Group's San Luis Potosí facility in Mexico is gearing up for production of the 'Neue Klasse' next-generation electric cars starting 2027. Construction of a local high-voltage battery assembly has now begun, along with expansion projects for the body shop, assembly and logistics areas. 

The automaker is spending about € 800 million towards the expansion of the Mexican production site. The facility is aimed at providing additional production capacity to the global supply of next-generation electric cars, scheduled to go production at Hungary and Munich in 2025 and 2026 respectively. 

The upcoming high-voltage battery assembly at San Luis Potosí, covering an area of more than 80,000 square metres, is key to integrating the 'Neue Klasse' at the production site, claims BMW. 

"The battery assembly in San Luis Potosí will be part of our global production network. For our new sixth-generation e-drive alone, we are building five locations on three continents," said Milan Nedeljković, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG responsible for Production, at the start of construction in Mexico. 

The BMW Group is committed to the 'local for local' principle worldwide, which involves situating battery facilities close to the vehicle assembly sites. "Locating battery factories close to vehicle manufacturing makes production more resilient", Nedeljković added. 

The Mexican battery facility apart, the automaker is building assemblies for the sixth-generation high-voltage batteries in Debrecen (Hungary), Shenyang (China), Woodruff, near Spartanburg (USA) and Irlbach-Straßkirchen (Lower Bavaria). 

The BMW Group will use its newly developed round cells for the first time in the 'Neue Klasse' EVs. This leap in technology will boost the energy density of cells by 20 percent and improve charging speed by up to 30 percent, thereby extending the driving range by 30 percent, according to the company.