Volkswagen Group

After battery electric vehicle (BEV) sales rose 26% in 2022, Volkswagen is doubling down on its EV strategy, investing nearly $200B (€180 billion) over the next five years to ramp production.

Volkswagen Group is reportedly pausing previously laid out plans for battery plants across Europe as it awaits the EU’s response to the Inflation Reduction Act in the US, which could offer the Group up to $10.5 billion in incentives. For now, Volkswagen will continue it progress in choosing a location of a US battery plant while it awaits what sort of conditions and/or incentives will come into play in what is being called the “EU Green Deal.”

Volkswagen Group has announced a revised target for its EV sales goal for Europe by 2030. The revised target builds upon the Group’s 2021 Accelerate electrification strategy and pertains specifically to its Volkswagen passenger car marque to help expedite the pace of EV adoption.

In a Tweet earlier this morning, South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster has confirmed that Volkswagen Group has chosen the Eastern state as home to its new production facility to build Scout brand EVs. The news comes after recent speculation about where Volkswagen would set up the new facility for Scout Motors after sharing intentions to implement its EV production to the US.

German automaker and VW Group subsidiary Audi is flirting with the idea of implementing EV production on US soil, so its vehicles can once again qualify for federal tax credits under new terms outlined in the Inflation Reduction Act. Audi CEO Markus Duesmann recently shared a couple of possibilities Audi is considering in a potential move to the states.

Thirty years ago to the day after opening its main production facility in Martorell, Spain, SEAT S.A. announced it will use the site as home to its largest transformation to electrification yet. Following an investment of three billion euros (~$3.2B), SEAT intends to lead development and become a small BEV production hub for a number of brands under the Volkswagen Group umbrella.

Following a recent supervisory board meeting, Volkswagen Group has announced a major shift in its electrification strategy to expedite EV production over the next five years. Additionally, the German automaker intends to revamp its software strategy in support of the effort. Software issues have had a huge effect on Volkswagen’s EV output up to this point.

EV fast charging network Electrify America has kicked off the week with a personnel shakeup, announcing current president and CEO Giovani Palazzo will shift into a position as chairman of the board to make room for long-time Electrify America leader, Rob Barrosa. With his new role as chairman, Palazzo will also join Volkswagen Group as its senior vice president of charging and energy.

The Volkswagen Group announced today that it will install up to 25,000 EV chargers globally along with its partners this year.

Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles has released its annual numbers for 2022 and is reporting strong output for its vehicles, including a doubling of EV deliveries dominated by the ID.Buzz electric van. Better still, the number of Buzz vans delivered last year is a mere fraction of what Volkswagen already has in its order books.

Following last week’s signing of the Inflation Reduction Act in the US, German legacy automakers Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz have sealed agreements with the Canadian government to acquire raw materials for EV battery manufacturing at their US facilities. This move could help EVs from both automakers qualify for US tax credits under the revised terms of the recently signed bill.

The game of musical CEO chairs continues on at Volkswagen Group as yet another executive is leaving their current post to lead a different marque. Current president and CEO for Volkswagen Group of America Scott Keogh announced he is stepping down after nearly five years to become CEO of Volkswagen’s new all-electric truck brand, Scout.

Surprising news has emerged out of Germany today, as Volkswagen Group chairman and CEO Herbert Diess has announced he is stepping down from this position at the company and will be replaced by Porsche AG CEO Oliver Blume.

Volkswagen has commissioned a fast charging park in Germany consisting of power storage containers (PSC), each powered by ninety-six reused EV batteries. This portable charging structure emulates a similar product VW Group subsidiary Audi has developed and implemented into a successful “Charging Hub” design.

This morning, Volkswagen Group of America (VWGoA) announced a collaboration with Redwood Materials, Inc. to implement a battery-recycling supply chain in the United States for Volkswagen- and Audi-branded EVs. The collab represents VW’s commitment to sustainability in the United States and beyond while simultaneously expanding Redwood’s closed-loop battery supply chain.

In what the companies are calling a “world’s first,” commercial vehicle manufacturer Scania AB has delivered its first electric timber truck to SCA – Europe’s largest private forest owner. The all-electric timber truck has a massive capacity of 80 tons and represents Sweden’s next step in becoming an entirely fossil fuel-free society.

Volkswagen has shared news that its ID family of all-electric vehicles has now grown by one. The
German automaker revealed the ID. AERO – a concept previewing Volkswagen’s future of electric sedans, as its production version is expected to arrive worldwide beginning in 2023.

A Volkswagen ID.4 GTX has set a Guinness World Record for the highest altitude achieved in an all-electric passenger vehicle. The ID.4 equipped with Monroe Intelligent Suspension CVSAe technology from Tenneco was driven by international adventure driver and multiple record holder, Rainer Zietlow.

In a recent interview out of Europe, Bentley CEO Adrian Hallmark promised some bold specs from the luxury automaker’s first battery electric vehicle. Despite describing the “brutality of acceleration” in the upcoming EV, the Bentley chief said that won’t be its main selling point. It will instead be the “effortless overtaking” from torque on demand. That price though…

German automotive conglomerate Volkswagen Group has shared positive Q1 reports, outlining a robust business despite global inhibitors like supply chain shortages and conflict in Eastern Europe. With its 2022 outlook optimistically confirmed, Volkswagen is expanding investments in R&D that includes new EV technologies as well as major funds to bring more BEVs to North America.

According to a recent report out of Germany, Volkswagen is flirting with the idea of opening a second US production facility, possibly in Chattanooga, TN, where its current footprint is. In addition to significantly expanding its capacity on US soil, Volkswagen is also reportedly considering implementing a battery cell plant nearby as well.