BMW announced today an 800 million euros investment in their North American plant in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. The hefty investment will be used for the integration of the company’s future Neue Klasse cars and for the construction of local high-voltage battery assembly. The Mexico-made electric vehicles will generate 1,000 new jobs.
“We are systematically gearing our production network towards electromobility. In Mexico, we are investing 800 million euros in our plant and creating around 1,000 new jobs,” explained Milan Nedeljković, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG responsible for Production, in San Luis Potosí at an event attended by Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and Governor of San Luis Potosí Ricardo Gallardo Cardona.
1,000 New Jobs
Nedeljković continued: “The first cars of the NEUE KLASSE will come off the production line at our plant in Debrecen, Hungary, starting in 2025, followed by the main plant in Munich. We will achieve additional volumes by integrating the NEUE KLASSE at Plant San Luis Potosí from 2027 onwards.” With the recent investment of 1.7 billion US dollars in the expansion of its Spartanburg plant, BMW aims to build at least six fully-electric models in the United States by 2030.
500 million euros invested in San Luis Potosi are earmarked for construction of a new assembly centre for high-voltage batteries. The new assembly centre spans an area of 85,000 m2. More than 500 additional employees will work there. The Mexican plant went functional in 2019 and employs around 3,000 people producing the BMW 3 Series, 2 Series Coupe and the new M2. The plant is also home to the BMW Group’s first paint shop to operate without producing process wastewater. The water required for the painting process is treated and then reused. In addition, the plant sources only green power, which it generates itself at a more than 70,000 m2 solar power installation on the plant grounds, supplemented by electricity from an external solar farm.
“With this new investment, our plant in San Luis Potosí will play a central role in BMW Group’s transition to electromobility. The company is increasing its commitment to Mexico and its stake in our facility, not only due to its strategic location but, above all, to a solid work team, which, in less than four years after starting operations, already produces three models that supply 74 global markets and stand out for their quality,” said Harald Gottsche, President & CEO at BMW Group Plant San Luis Potosí.
BMW’s first Neue Klasse models will arrive in 2025-2026, likely in the form of a BMW i3 sedan and an iX3 electric SAV. The company aims to offer more insight into their Neue Klasse plans later this year at the Munich Auto Show (IAA).