BMW planning to construct Hungary factory in 2019
BMW has announced their plan to begin construction on their next factory in Hungary with an annual capacity of 150,000 vehicles next year. The Bavarians aim to set up a flexible production mode, which will allow them to manufacture both combustion and new energy vehicles in the same facility.
The new facility will be constructed near the city Debrecen in the eastern part of the nation. The construction begin is set for the middle of 2019, while it is still open when the factory will be opening for business and which vehicle models will be manufactured there.
We do however know that the factory will cost a sum of approximately 1 billion euros. BMW also spoke of the creation of around 1,000 jobs in the factory, as well as further job creation in the form of suppliers and service providers around the factory. The location was chosen because of the good local infrastructure and the proximity to established supply networks. BMW has been present in Hungary since 2004. Last year, the company purchased materials and services for the local business in the sum of 1.4 billion euros.
The decision underlines BMW’s efforts to keep global growth even – after high investment in China, Mexico and the USA, it is Europe’s turn again for more modern production capacities. This was stated by BMW boss Harald Krüger.
The message is clear: while foreign markets are certainly of interest for the Bavarians, Germany and Europe are still their main priority. Alone in 2018, the company will invest more than 1 billion euros in the German production facilities to prepare them for the incoming electro mobility production efforts. Alone 300 million will flow into the modernization of their Leipzig factory, where the i3 and i8 will be manufactured.
The overarching goal here is to reach the sales target of 140,000 EVs this year. In the first months of the year, BMW already noted a sales increase of 40% for electrified vehicles. Another target is to have at least half a million BMW EVs on the road by the end of 2019.
In order to reach these goals, the BMW factories are being upgraded to include more modern production techniques, as well as a high degree of flexibility. This will not only make the company quicker in terms of manufacturing strategy, but will also be more efficient, which the Bavarians hope will ensure their competitiveness for the future.
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