Battery & Charging

The battery is a key component in an electric vehicle, and an important cost factor. The appeal and market success of e-mobility is determined not only by the price, but also by the vehicle´s range and the charging speed. We must become a profit-generating expert across the entire battery life cycle to achieve our objective of transforming into a world-leading provider of sustainable mobility. To this end, the Cell and Battery Strategy tech initiative pools expertise across the Group and is driving the transformation process in cooperation with our strategic partners. The aspects covered include battery management, cell production and recycling. Our aim is to develop battery cell technology into a core competence in the Group, and we are also working with partners to achieve this. At the heart of this strategy is the new unified cell, which can contain different chemistries and will be used in up to 80% of Group models by 2030. The excellent economies of scale this generates will reduce costs by up to 50 % and put us in a leading cost position. To cover the high demand for battery cells, Volkswagen plans to build six gigafactories in Europe alone, with a production capacity totaling 240 GWh.

Charging, energy and a sustainable energy supply infrastructure for all-electric vehicles are key prereq¬uisites for accelerating the transition to the battery-electric mobility of the future. It is therefore our intention also to become a comprehensive charging and energy services provider in the future and we are investing heavily in building an open fast-charging network worldwide. By 2025, we and our partners plan to create around 45,000 high-power charging points in Europe, China and the USA. The product portfolio also includes the full range of charging solutions for private customers and companies. In addition to our own wallbox and flexible fast-charging station, the focus is particularly on contract-based charging services and smart green electricity tariffs. Charging processes will then systematically use renewable energy and reduce pressure on power grids. In a next step, Volkswagen intends to develop the electric vehicle as a mobile power bank, thus helping electric vehicles to act as storage units and thus become an active part of the energy system in the future. In this way, Volkswagen wishes to enable its customers to participate in one of the leading smart-charging and energy ecosystems for decarbonized mobility.