Mercedes Benz is in agreement with China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited (CATL) for battery cells. The Chinese battery maker will supply battery cells for next-generation Mercedes Benz models. The automaker marks its next milestone by reaching more than 200-gigawatt hours in battery production capacity by the end of the decade. It will be through the eight global production sites.
Mercedes0Benz management board member Markus Schaefer said, “With CATL we have a technology-leader as our partner to provide us – as the first and biggest customer of the new plant’s initial capacity – with top-notch CO2 neutral battery cells for our next generation EVs in Europe.”
CATL will invest €7.34B to build the 100 GWh battery plant in Debrecen—its second battery plant in Europe following its German plant. Subject to the shareholder meeting approval, construction of the first production facilities will start within this year. The project will supply both cells and modules to European automakers.
To build a sustainable and circular battery value chain, CATL is also examining the possibility of joining forces with local partners to establish facilities for battery materials in Europe. The new factory in Hungary expands a partnership between Mercedes-Benz and CATL which was first announced in August 2020 and marks the next milestone in a local-for-local purchasing strategy.
Battery cells
The plant will provide battery cells for the next-generation Mercedes-Benz models. CO2-neutral battery cell production for the latest Mercedes-Benz models was audited and certified by third-party companies DEKRA and SGS. In line with this strategy, the new CATL plant in Hungary will also produce battery cells for Mercedes-Benz CO2 neutrally.
CATL chairman and founder, Dr. Robin Zeng said, “There is no doubt that our plant in Debrecen will enable us to further sharpen our competitive edge, better respond to our customers in Europe, and accelerate the transition to e-mobility in Europe. The green-field project in Hungary will be a giant leap in CATL’s global expansion.” Mercedes-Benz relies on a modular, highly standardized battery kit that allows the integration of battery cells and modules from different development partners through uniformly designed components and interfaces. CATL will provide these battery cells for EV production at the European production sites of Mercedes-Benz in Germany and Hungary.
CATL is also a battery provider for Tesla. The Chinese battery maker continues to expand globally. It is one of the major global EV battery makers which supplied batteries to top EV makers in the world.
