An affordable electric vehicle, which costs less than 20,000-Euro is on the cards for German automobile manufacturer Volkswagen. Though there is no confirmation on producing such a model as yet, the company’s CEO Oliver Blume believes that it is possible by the second half of this decade. Speaking at the Sueddeutsche Zeitung Wirtschaftsgipfel conference in Berlin, he emphasized on reducing battery costs to achieve this feat, Reuters reported.
He elaborated by pointing to the company’s plans to produce a unified battery cell, that Volkswagen claims will cut the battery costs by half. “We have a responsibility to bring the right products at the right price onto the market,” he said.
What is the unified battery cell?
In March of 2021, the German company had announced its technology roadmap for EV batteries and the new unified cell is a part of that plan. The battery system will follow three core principles – optimization of the cell type, deployment of innovative production methods and consistent recycling. With this, Volkswagen aims to gradually cut the battery costs in the entry-level segment by up to 50% and in the volume segment by up to 30%, meanwhile increasing the range.
Increasing production capacity
The automaker had also announced that it will establish six battery gigafactories by the end of this decade, in Europe alone, with a total production capacity of 240 GWh. The target that has been set is for these factories to produce cells with a total energy value of 240 GWh per year. The unified battery cell’s production is set to commence this year.
Volkswagen ID.2all concept
Volkswagen is already on the path to launch affordable all-electric models and the ID.2all is the first step towards this goal. Earlier this year, the German brand debuted the concept version of ID.2all, its all-electric model costing less than 25,000 euros. The company plans to present its production version for the European market in 2025, promising a range of more than 400 kilometres. Apart from its low cost, the highlights of the model are its innovative features such as travel assist and electric vehicle route planner (IQ.LIGHT).