German supplier Webasto has commissioned a new plant for batteries for EVS in Dangjin, Korea, south of Seoul. An order from Hyundai-Kia to supply battery systems for several fully electric passenger car volume models has made the new production a feasible necessity.
The new site, modelled on Webasto’s battery production in Schierling, Germany, started in 2019 and measures 22,000 square metres. The supplier expects to manufacture up to 110,000 battery modules in South Korea annually and plans expansion to a capacity of 160,000 units by 2025. Webasto is investing around 88 million euros at this location.
Production in Dangjin started in April, now followed by the official opening. The company considers the opening of Dangjin “a milestone for developing the electromobility business”. Webasto has been producing and selling roof systems in South Korea since the late 1980s and formed Webasto Korea in 2019, the integrating solutions for electromobility in the portfolio.
The battery packs now assembled are available in two different variants: the long-range version with an energy content of 68.7 kWh and a basic version with 50.9 kWh. It remains to be seen in which models Hyundai-Kia will install the packs from Webasto – the supplier does not provide any details on this.
In addition, Webasto announced at The Battery Show in Stuttgart that it had received its first battery order from an unnamed German manufacturer earlier this year. To be able to serve this order, an additional plant will be built in Europe, Webasto says. However, the company has not yet named the location.
In total, the two most recent battery orders alone have a volume of more than one billion euros. For Webasto, this marks a turning point: incoming orders in the e-mobility segment in the first three months of 2022 will exceed those of the established core business with roofs and heating and cooling solutions for the first time.
In addition to battery assembly in South Korea, the supplier is also expanding its Asian footprint in other areas – Webasto expanded the production of sunroofs in India and Japan. In January 2020, Webasto had also opened a battery centre in Jiaxing, China, as reported. The Chinese plant also produces roof systems.
“South Korea, India and Japan are dynamic growth markets with great potential for both our core business and our electromobility solutions. As a basic principle, we produce in the market for the market, so given the need for our products in these countries, it quickly became clear that we would strengthen our local presence,” explains Dr Holger Engelmann, Chairman of the Management Board of Webasto SE. “Broadening our footprint in Asia beyond China, our largest single market to date is a strategically important decision for the future of Webasto,” he said.
The orders being fulfilled in South Korea and soon Europe are the first in the passenger EV segment. Webasto’s plant in Schierling, Germany, focuses on assembling battery modules for electrified commercial vehicles. The company claims that over 20 customers have now placed orders for “the standard battery system, which combines the price benefits of a scalable mass-market product with the precision fit of a custom solution”. Depending on the configuration, it can be utilized in 400- and 800-volt systems.
webasto-group.com (South Korea), webasto-group.com (European expansion)
Keyword: Germany’s Webasto opens battery assembly in South Korea