German car manufacturer Volkswagen has announced its intention to build a new electric car plant in Germany, in a bid to compete with electric auto rival Tesla.
The new plant will be conveniently located next to Volkswagen’s current headquarters in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony. The company has said that construction will begin “as early as spring 2023”.
This means that the first cars to roll off the production line of the new electric vehicle factory will be complete by 2026. VW is investing 35 billion euros to fund its ambitions to become a leader in electric vehicle manufacturing. The firm aims to become the world’s largest electric vehicle company by 2025.
VW’s announcement comes after US rival Tesla was officially given permission to start production at their new “gigafactory” in the state of Brandenburg. VW's new factory will set the international company back 2,2 billion dollars, and will be dedicated to the production of “Project Trinity” vehicles, the core of VW’s electric ambitions.
Head of VW’s brand Ralf Brandstaetter stated that the new factory is an “important milestone” for the firm. The company is hoping to take on Tesla, who currently make a brand new electric car in the space of 10 hours. By comparison, VW are currently able to produce a new electric car in around 30 hours, according to group CEO Herbert Diess.