Germany's BMW Group and China's Great Wall Motor have announced a new partnership with the goal of cooperatively building a factory in China to produce fully-electric models sporting the former's Mini car brand. The new electric Minis rolling out of the factory will be sold to Chinese consumers, with plans to expand into other Asian markets.
According to BMW, the first phase of the construction of the new manufacturing facility will take place sometime between 2020 and 2022. The factory will be located in the city of Zhangjiagang in China's Jiangsu province.
To achieve this goal, the two automotive manufacturing giants announced that they will be forming a new joint venture company called Spotlight Automotive Limited. The companies estimate that the establishment of the new manufacturing facility in China will cost around $715 million. The new factory is expected to have a total capacity of 160,000 vehicles per year.
BMW and Great Wall mentioned late last week that Spotlight Automotive Limited will primarily be focusing on building new battery electric vehicles. Both companies will be working together on research and development for their planned new products.
BMW AG board member Nicolas Peter mentioned in a statement that the joint venture should allow the company to enhance its production capabilities in the world's second-largest car market.
China is currently the world's biggest electric car market, bigger than the United States and Europe. In 2018, over one million fully-electric vehicles were sold in the country and that number is expected to increase in the coming years. Worldwide, total electric vehicle sales hit around 1.98 million last year.
Peter stated that the strategic partnership is an important step for the company and the Mini brand in terms of its shift to electrification. The executive also stated that the substantial investment it is making in China does underline the importance the company places on China as one of its biggest markets.
Outside of China, BMW has already started its development of a Mini-branded electric vehicle. The yet-to-be-released model is currently being developed and built in Oxford, England. BMW plans to release the new model in March 2020, with prices starting at around $36,000.
Apart from BMW, other global carmakers are also making big investments to accelerate their shift into electric mobility. Most are focusing their efforts on penetrating China's rapidly growing electric vehicle market.
Last Week, Volkswagen China announced that it plans to invest more than $4 billion in 2020. Around 40 percent of that amount will be allocated to accelerating the company's shift to electric vehicles.
Similar to BMW and Great Wall, Renault and Jiangling Motors Corporation had announced in July that they will be forming a new joint venture to produce fully-electric models in China.
