Volkswagen is leading the established automotive manufacturers in driving forward the shift to electric vehicle manufacturing with its ACCELERATE strategy. This month was the official start of production of the ID.5 and ID.5 GTX marks the completion of Volkswagen’s successful transformation of its Zwickau plant into a dedicated electric vehicle production facility.
Key Points
World’s first complete conversion of a large-scale factory from internal combustion engine vehicle production to dedicated electric vehicle production.
Six models from the Volkswagen, Audi, and CUPRA brands will now be manufactured in Zwickau based on the modular electric drive matrix (MEB).
The Volkswagen brand has thus laid the foundations for building 1.2 million all electric vehicles at its sites in Europe, the USA, and China in 2022 based on the MEB
Vehicle portfolio complete: Zwickau officially starts production of its sixth all-electric model, the ID.5
Dr. Stefan Loth, Chairman of the Board of Volkswagen Saxony: “After Gläserne Manufaktur Dresden, we have now converted a second Volkswagen factory in Saxony to dedicated electric vehicle production. The start of production of the ID.5 and ID.5 GTX marks the successful transformation of the Zwickau plant on the product side. Our focus now will be on achieving full capacity. This year we aim to exceed the 180,000 vehicles Volkswagen Saxony built in 2021.”
Jens Rothe, Chairman of the General Works Council at Volkswagen Saxony: “Switching over to electric vehicle production was exactly the right decision for the Zwickau plant. Demand for our models is booming, and our team’s jobs will be safe for years to come. We are a trailblazer of change and have repaid the Group’s trust in us. This is first and foremost a fantastic achievement by our workforce.”
An efficient digital model factory
Since 2018, around 1.2 billion euros has been spent on converting the Zwickau plant from ICE vehicle production into a digital, flexible, highly efficient showcase factory for the manufacture of electric vehicles. Increasing use is being made of technology such as smart Industry 4.0 robots and driverless transportation systems that take components to the assembly line completely autonomously. Close to 40 percent of the investment volume went into the enhancement and expansion of the body shop alone. This area’s already high level of automation now reaches nearly 90 percent, and the number of state of the art robots has risen from 1,200 to 1,625.
Models and production figures
In Zwickau, six models from three brands will leave the production line – the Volkswagen ID.3, ID.4, and ID.5 plus the Audi Q4 e-tron, Q4 Sportback e-tron, and CUPRA. The production capacity corresponds to an annual output of more than 300,000 vehicles, making the Zwickau plant currently the most efficient electric vehicle manufacturing facility in Europe.
Target vision of the Volkswagen brand
At the heart of the “Way to ZERO” decarbonization program is the brand’s ACCELERATE strategy aimed at stepping up the pace of the electric offensive. Volkswagen intends to be net carbon neutral by 2050 at the latest. The interim target is to cut CO2 emissions per vehicle by 40 percent in Europe by 2030 (baseline: 2018). The production, including supply chains, and operation of electric cars are to be made net carbon neutral. Added to this is the systematic recycling of the high-voltage batteries from old electric vehicles. The goal is the full electrification of the new vehicle fleet. By 2030, at least 70 percent of all Volkswagen’s unit sales in Europe will be all-electric vehicles – i.e. substantially more than one million vehicles. In North America and China, the share of electric vehicles in unit sales is expected to reach at least 50 percent. In addition, Volkswagen will be launching at least one new electric car each year.
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