BMW will also manufacture its “Neue Klasse” or New Class electric cars in China. Following the market launch in 2025, the next-gen EV models will also be produced by the China joint venture BMW Brilliance Automotive (BBA) in Shenyang from 2026, as will the batteries required for them.
The Chinese joint venture BMW Brilliance Automotive (BBA) has announced an investment of around 10 billion yuan (1.38 billion euros) in the expansion of its electric car battery production in the city of Shenyang. This is to supply the vehicle plants there.
The BMW Group has expanded its production capacity in China to 830,000 vehicles per year with the official opening of the BMW Brilliance Automotive plant in Lydia, a district of Shenyang.
The BMW Brilliance Automotive (BBA) joint venture has just established a closed cycle recycling operation in China for the reuse of the raw materials nickel, lithium and cobalt from high-voltage batteries. Compared to the use of newly mined material, CO2 emissions are to be reduced by 70 per cent.
The Chinese joint venture BMW Brilliance Automotive (BBA) has inaugurated the expansion of its Dadong plant in the city of Shenyang, China. With the completion of the conversion measures, the plant will be able to flexibly produce vehicles with combustion engines, plug-in hybrids or fully electric drive systems.
BMW has officially unveiled the all-electric 3 Series, which will be launched exclusively in China in May 2022. The model is called BMW i3 eDrive35L and will be manufactured at the BMW Brilliance Automotive plant in Lydia, a district of Shenyang.
BMW has acquired a majority stake in BMW Brilliance Automotive. As announced three years ago, the Munich-based carmaker holds only 75 per cent of the shares. One of the first acts as the new majority owner is the announcement of a new plant for the joint venture.
BMW is apparently planning a renewed expansion of its involvement in China. According to a media report, this not only involves an increase in shares in the BMW-Brilliance joint venture, but also several electrified models – but unlike the iX3, these are not to be built for the global market.
Renault appears to be willing to break up its electric van joint venture in China. According to news agencies, the French company was in advanced talks to end its JV with China’s state-backed Brilliance, which was established at the end of 2017.
Chinese state-owned carmaker FAW is considering taking over BMW’s local partner Brilliance. The background is the precarious financial situation of Brilliance’s largest shareholder, the Huachen Automotive Group, which is on the verge of bankruptcy.
BMW has given a new interim result for the market launch of the iX3. The test procedures required for homologation were completed and the results sent to the approval authorities in the most important automobile markets.
BMW Brilliance has begun construction of a new production facility on the existing Chinese plant site in Tiexi, a district of Shenyang in Liaoning Province. With the new plant, BMW Brilliance (BBA) intends to double production capacity at the site.
The BMW Board of Management has apparently given the go-ahead for electric versions of the 5 Series and the X1 compact SUV. An all-electric 5 Series is also part of BMW’s product plan in China. A fully electric 3-series will also be added.
The BMW Group is getting closer to achieving their plan of increasing their shares in the BMW Brilliance Automotive joint venture to acquire the majority. A special meeting of Brilliance China Automotive (CBA) has agreed to the sale of another 25% of the company to BMW.
BMW is pushing ahead with its electrical plans in China. First, the carmaker takes over the majority of the joint venture with local car manufacturer Brilliance, second, the joint venture announced that it would invest over 3 bn euros in new and existing plant structures in Shenyang.
BMW is planning to increase the ownership percentage of their joint venture BMW Brilliance Automotive (BBA) in China to at least 75%, which would make them the first foreign vehicle manufacturer in China to receive permission to own more than 50% of a JV.
BMW and its partner in China, Brilliance, agreed to expand their BMW Brilliance Automotive (BBA) joint venture. BBA aims to increase capacity at both local facilities in order to produce 520,000 BMW a year from 2019. Moreover, the BMW iX3 may hit markets outside the People’s Republic.
Only half a year after opening their Chinese battery factory, the BMW Brilliance Automotive joint venture has laid the foundation for a major expansion. The new complex will be called the High Voltage Battery Centre Phase II.
BMW is doubling down on their investment: The Concept iX3 will have a motor performance of over 200 kW, when it goes into serial production in 2020 as an SAV (Sports Activity Vehicle). According to the new WLTP measuring system, the range even exceeds 400 km.
The German carmaker says they already installed 65,000 charging points in China in a joint effort with the People’s Republic’s four mayor providers. This year, said network shall grow to 80,000 charge points accessible to the public in more than 100 cities.
BMW and the Chinese car manufacturer Great Wall are planning a joint venture to build electric cars under the Mini brand in China. Great Wall had already indicated as much last October, but now a statement of intent has been signed as well.
Renault and Brilliance have closed a deal to build light commercial vehicles together in China and to advance the electrification of powertrains. The joint venture is called Renault-Brilliance-Jinbei.
First Model 3 is out and real and truly looks like the pre-production version. Elon Musk tweeted the premier picture from the production run that has just started on Friday. A colleague bought him the Model 3 no. 1 for his 46th birthday but the EV maker hopes to produce up to 20,000 units a day comes December and as always, the plan is ambitious and will ultimately influence the stock market. There, Tesla has lost its pole position to GM again, after slightly disappointing deliveries in Q2. twitter.com (first pic), marketwatch.com (shares)
Micro mobility by BMW: Motorbikes and bicycles are nothing new for BMW but this electric kick scooter is. Developed together with ZEG and distributed via Kettler, both bike makers, the X2City is classed as pedelec level, that assists up to 25 kph with a 35 km range. Expect a price below 2,500 euros comes autumn. Naturally, the stand-up scooter folds but its almost 20 kilos won’t be ideal to carry. carscoops.com, bmwgroup.com
Renault Brilliance: Renault-Nissan also ventures into old-new markets as it acquires 49 percent of Brilliance’s bus business to strengthen its position in China’s light commercial vehicle sector. The JV partners will invest a combined 1.5bn yuan (221m dollars) and most of the LCVs will be electrified. forbes.com, renault.com
Poland on the offensiv-e? ‘Electromobility Poland’ is the government-led tender to make a small electric car in and for Poland. Projected start for serial production is by 2018/19 and the jury is currently looking into over 90 applicants. Meanwhile though, two more electric models have emerged. One local company is working on electrifying the Fiat 500, another on a van àla StreetScooter. gtai.de (in German)
Audi FE takeover complete: As it takes over ABT entirely, Audi is now officially and fully involved in the Formula E. Team ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport is the current runner-up in the championship and the carmaker is working on new drivetrains too. electricautosport.com
Hybrid Bentley caught: As the Brits work on their plug-in hybrid, it got banned on film – well, in pixels, that show the SUV Bentayga PHEV during testing. autoblog.com, motor1.com
Japanese subsidies for FCVs: Toyota and Honda are getting high-level support before the 2015 launch of their fuel cell vehicles. The Japanese government released its plan for subsidising hydrogen vehicles through incentives and tax rebates, putting them on par with conventional hybrid models. Additionally, Japan plans to increase its H2 stations network sixfold until 2016, while the price of installing a hydrogen station is said drop 50 per cent by 2020. reuters.com, the-japan-news.com
Brilliant partnership: BMW extends its joint venture with Chinese partner Brilliance prematurely by ten years. Originally, the JV was to terminate by 2018 but will now run until 2028, giving the Bavarian carmaker the chance for long-term expansion. The Chinese government signed off on the contract extension. bloomberg.com, europe.autonews.com
Hero literally leaps into hybrid market: The electric motorcycle company plans to launch its series-hybrid scooter “Leap” in February 2015. It will be produced in rather small volumes (around 6,000) and is scheduled to arrive on the European and U.S. first, before eventually being introduced in India. autocarpro.in, indianautosblog.com
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LaFerrari convertible? Apparently, Ferrari not only plans a race version of its latest hybrid super car (we reported) but also a convertible called Spider. Rumour has it that the manufacturer will build only 50 of these topless LaFerraris. automobilemag.com, motorauthority.com
Chevy calls for improvements: GM asked owners of Chevy Volts built between 2012 and 2013 to swing by their local garage to have a possible problem with the battery cooling fixed. The company insists, however, that this is not an official recall. greencarreports.com, transportevolved.com
Maxi e-scooter review: Roland Brown took the BMW C Evolution for a spin. Brown finds that the electric scooter, which is being produced close to Electrive’s Berlin HQ, surges forward at a “very entertaining rate.” His only doubt is if the “British motorcycling public is ready” for it. telegraph.co.uk