BMW electric cars will soon get EV batteries similar to Tesla: Reports
German auto giant BMW has reportedly tied up with China's EVE Energy to get large cylindrical batteries for its electric cars in Europe. The two companies have signed agreements which makes the Chinese battery manufacturer BMW's primary suppliers of battery cells. In an effort to catch up with the leaders in global EV markets, like Tesla, BMW is now aiming for bigger batteries for improved range and performances. BMW is planning to launch several new electric cars in the European markets in the next three years.
According to reports, the Chinese company will supply EV batteries to BMW which will be of similar size to that of the ones being developed by Tesla. The US-based EV maker had earlier introduced a larger-format 4680 cylindrical battery which is aimed to reduce production costs and improve range of electric cars. The Chinese company is in the process of setting up a large cylindrical battery plant soon.
BMW currently uses prismatic batteries for all its EVs, including the likes of iX and i4 which have been launched in India. The BMW i4 offers one of the highest ranges for an electric car in its segment at nearly 600 km on a single charge. The larger-format cylindrical batteries are expected to return more mileage out of a single charge as well as keep the price of EVs down.
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Besides EVE, BMW is also expected to get similar help from CATL, world's largest battery maker, from 2025. CATL has already announced that it would build a cylindrical battery production facility in Hungary, which is its first plant in Europe and also the biggest in the continent with annual capacity of 100 gigawatt hours. However, CATL's biggest client will be Mercedes-Benz, and not BMW. The facility is in the same city where BMW will also set up a plant to produce EVs.
Besides the German luxury carmakers, the Chinese company also supplies batteries to Xpeng.
