VDL bags order to assemble 125,000 battery modules for BMW Group

Netherlands-based VDL Groep is planning to kick-start serial-assembly of EV battery systems at its Mobility Innovation Centre (MIC) in Born. The company has recently received an initial, long-term order to assemble approximately 125,000 battery modules for BMW Group's after sales business until at least 2035. 

With start-up work already in progress, the first battery modules are scheduled to be delivered to BMW in about a year. Two battery lines will be put into use in a new production unit in Born, taking up approximately 10 percent of the available production capacity, the company claims. 

"This first order for the assembly of battery modules from our partner BMW Group ensures a flying start for our activities surrounding the serial assembly of battery systems, one of the pillars of our Mobility Innovation Centre in Born", said Willem van der Leegte, President and CEO of VDL Groep. 

"By delivering new and sustainable mobility solutions, for both our partners and our own activities, we want our Mobility Innovation Centre in Born to enable us to be a flexible and expert innovation and industrialization partner", he added. 

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VDL claims that it is also in discussions with other potential clients for the serial assembly of battery systems for electric vehicles, including battery modules and or battery packs. 

The company is also associated with 'Green Transport & Delta - Electrification' project, which aspires develop a battery ecosystem in the Netherlands that can accelerate the transition to climate-neutral mobility in the region. The project is aimed at further developing the partners' battery systems into semi-automatically produced battery systems. 

The group's subsidiary VDL Nedcar, a contract manufacturing company that's been into the assembly of cars for several decades, is also showing keen interest in assembling electric vehicles for prominent EV manufacturers from its manufacturing lines in Born.