- Global production readying for electro-mobility
- New car based on EQ in look of sporty SUV/coupé
- Cars “made in Bremen” will cover entire range
STUTTGART, Germany – Mercedes-Benz has taken the next step in implementing its “electric offensive” with the first units to be assembled in Bremen, Germany, by 2021.
The production model will be based on the EQ show car, an electric vehicle which, Mercedes says, has the look of a sporty SUV/coupé and a potential range of 500km and was first shown at the September 2016 Paris auto show with a promise of “all Mercedes’ strengths such as safety, comfort, functionality and connectivity”.
The EQ is described as “an elementary part of the corporate strategy” for future mobility bundled under the acronym CASE – Connected, Autonomous, Shared & Services and Electric Drive, which are connected intelligently.
Mercedes-Benz Cars wants to have about a dozen all-electric vehicles in its portfolio by 2025 with production on four continents at existing facilities – they are not name, but The Corner hopes it will include South Africa.
Markus Schäfer, from Mercedes-Benz Cars supply chain management, announced: “We’ve started intensive preparation in Bremen. In general, our new production organisation has become highly flexible, allowing us to quickly react in case of increasing customer demand.
The product portfolio at Bremen already includes 10 models: next to vehicles with conventional combustion engines on the production lines are plug-in C-Class hybrids and GLC and the GLC F-Cell.
The battery for the new electric vehicle will be developed by Daimler subsidiary Accumotive and a plant in Saxony is being expanded to accommodate CASE with an investment of 500-million euros.
Mercedes-Benz says this will be one of the largest and most modern battery factories in Europe. Accumotive will produce lithium-ion batteries for all Mercedes-Benz and Smart electric vehicles – including plug-in hybrids and fully electric vehicles.
It will also make batteries for stationary Mercedes-Benz energy storage units and 48V automotive systems. Daimler plans an overall investment of more than a billion euros in global battery production.
Dieter Zetsche, CEO of Daimler and head of Mercedes-Benz Cars, told The Corner in a media release from company HQ in Stuttgart: “Zero-emissions automobiles are the future. I’m pleased that our first electric EQ range will be assembled in Bremen.
“The Bremen plant delivers a maximum of flexibility and high speed as well as the quality for our electric models.”
