Mercedes-Benz will build four cell factories in Europe According to its press release, Mercedes-Benz is taking an equity stake in European battery cell manufacturer Automotive Cells Company (ACC). Mercedes-Benz will […]
According to its press release, Mercedes-Benz is taking an equity stake in European battery cell manufacturer Automotive Cells Company (ACC).
Mercedes-Benz will go fully electric by the end of the decade, wherever market conditions allow. To reach this target, the company needs more than 200 Gigawatt hours as a total battery production capacity by 2030. Thus, the German automotive giant plans to build eight cell factories worldwide together with partners, four of them in Europe. That is why the company is taking an equity stake in ACC.
The entire ACC project will require an investment volume of more than seven billion Euros. This investment will include equity, debt and subsidies. As a result, the project will reach a capacity of at least 120 Gigawatt hours in Europe by 2030. Mercedes-Benz will invest a mid-three-digit-million euros amount next year.
On one hand, ACC will supply Mercedes-Benz with high-performance battery technologies from its production locations from around 2025. The battery company also tries to expand its production network in Europe.
On the other hand, Mercedes-Benz will be able to offer widespread research and development activities relating to battery technology. In fact, the German company can make use of its expertise. As a result, ACC will expand its production network.
Stellantis, TotalEnergies and Mercedes-Benz founded Automotive Cells Company (ACC) together in 2020. Its goal is to become the European market leader for car battery cells and modules. As a result, they want to achieve the society where everybody can access clean and efficient mobility. They established the R&D center in Bordeaux (France) and the pilot site in Nersac (France), respectively.
With Ambition 2039, Mercedes-Benz is aiming the goal of CO2 neutrality along the entire value chain. The CO2 neutral production of battery cells is an important. This is because production of car battery cells are major part of EVs in terms of business and their cost. Therefore, ACC will primarily use electricity from renewable energies for the production of high-performance battery technologies.
Other important sustainability aspects are the responsible sourcing of raw materials and the intelligent use of resources. For the battery cells, they will use raw materials from certified mines. What’s more, its partners are reducing critical materials with the use of new technologies. For a closed raw material cycle, ACC battery cells will be over 95% recyclable.
Our media, T-ASK, reports several news that automotive manufacturers are producing its batteries. Therefore, this announcement is not new for many people. However, the important point here is that we must take electrification into consideration more seriously. Of course, there are some critics about climate change and the effect of electrification. It is also true that we must consider Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and which energy sources we use to produce products.
However, from small medium enterprises (SMEs)’s point of view, they must set a clear strategy to survive. This is because electrification is changing the industry structure rapidly and drastically. For example, some components of gasoline or diesel engine vehicles will not be produced anymore. Another example, the value chain in the automotive industry will be from vertical integration into horizontal integration. Therefore, the management of SMEs must make bold decisions, even though they are changing in a month or a day.
