The BMW Group is building on its leading position in the world of electric mobility and has pooled its many years of experience with battery cells and extensive knowledge in the field in a new Competence Centre. The purpose of the facility in Munich is to advance battery cell technology and carefully dissect the production processes. “The new Battery Cell Competence Centre puts us in an enviable position,” said Oliver Zipse, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG. “Taking the technology currently in the BMW i3 as a basis, by 2030 we will be able to double the energy density of our battery cells – and therefore also the operating range of the vehicles for our customers.”

The BMW Group today presented its new high-tech Competence Centre to media representatives from around the world in the presence of Bavarian state premier Dr Markus Söder, revealing state-of-the-art labs, research facilities and prototype systems.

And Zipse continued: “Battery cell technology is a key success factor in our electric vehicle offensive, as it influences both operational performance and battery costs. Our unrivalled expertise throughout the value chain ensures we are always at the cutting edge of technology. We can specify the exact formats we want to procure, as well as the materials and the conditions involved. As a result, we are ideally positioned to drive forward the rollout of our electrified vehicles.”

The new Competence Centre maps the entire value chain of battery cell technology – from research and development to a cell’s composition and design, and its suitability for large-scale manufacture. The facility brings together the full breadth of the company’s expertise and lays the foundations for adding to it. The short distances and cross-functional collaboration at work here will enable complete, transparent and sustainable development of battery cells. Here, it is important that consideration is given to the issue of recycling from the outset.

The BMW Group is investing a total of € 200 million in the Competence Centre and employees 200 people here. With this investment, the company is making a statement technologically but also safeguarding jobs and key skills. The company is working together with its employees to define the future of electric mobility at the BMW Group. “The Joint Works Council has been committed to the Battery Cell Competence Centre from the outset,” said Stefan Schmid, Deputy Chairman of the Joint Works Council at BMW AG. “The employee representatives at the BMW Group are actively involved in shaping these future-focused areas of the automotive industry, with the aim of developing the specific expertise of our employees within the company – and in so doing securing jobs for the long term during the process of transformation.”

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