GÖTTINGEN, Germany, Sept. 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- On the morning of September 16, the first locally produced battery product was officially launched in Göttingen, a famous university town in central Germany. This is a milestone event for Gotion's first battery production and operation base in Europe. The ceremony was witnessed by Stephan Weil, Governor of Lower Saxony, and Cong Wu, Consul General of China in Hamburg. On the same day, Gotion also signed cooperation agreements with internationally renowned companies such as BASF, ABB, Ebusco, and Ficosa.
At the event, participating guests collectively pressed the start button to formally launch the first automated battery pack production line at Gotion's German base. When an AGV (Automated Guided Vehicle) slowly transported the first battery pack from the testing area to the guests, everyone erupted in enthusiastic applause. "I'm very lucky, it's a very good moment in my life." Andreas, a worker at the Göttingen factory who just signed the first battery pack, shared his excitement with more than 200 colleagues. The official commissioning and operation of the battery pack production line demonstrate that Gotion has achieved localized production and supply in Europe. Gotion's batteries have officially embarked on the path of "Made in Germany".
"Our Göttingen factory's production line is highly automated, with an overall automation level of nearly 70%, and close to 80% in the module assembly stage," said Ray Chen, Vice President of Gotion Global. Klaus Gohde, General Manager of the Göttingen plant, stressed that there is a high degree of consensus and consistency of action among the Göttingen team in promoting the transformation of the plant from ICE business to battery business in a "One Gotion" approach. In addition, Steven Cai, Gotion's CTO, also unveiled the company's strategic planning in Europe. As he introduced, the current production capacity plan for the Göttingen factory is 20GWh, which is expected to be completed in four phases. Once fully operational, it is estimated to generate an annual output value of EUR 2 billion. Peter Willemsen, COO of Gotion Global and managing director of the German entities, said that the spirit of cooperation between China and Europe was important in efforts to "make Europe green again". The first production line of Gotion's Göttingen factory was officially put into mass production today. At present, the factory has received a large number of orders from Europe. It is expected that it can supply products for European customers from October. By mid-2024, the actual production capacity may reach 5GWh. "The battery pack products from the factory include those for commercial vehicles, energy storage systems, and passenger vehicles. Additionally, the factory will serve as an R&D, logistics, and after-sales service center for Gotion's European production and operations base."
The high demand for orders was evident in the signing ceremony. On September 16, Gotion High-tech signed cooperation agreements with five internationally renowned companies, covering various aspects such as battery materials, product development, and the supply of automotive and energy storage products. Specifically, Gotion will further collaborate with BASF China on battery material-related projects. Gotion and ABB from Switzerland will work together on battery product supply and technology R&D, to support ABB's new factories in Europe and the United States. Cooperation with Ebusco will focus on the development and production of energy storage battery systems and wind and solar energy storage projects. In addition, Gotion will cooperate with Ficosa and Idneo in intelligent mobile energy storage and charging vehicles, battery banking, battery recycling, BMS, and Big Data engineering.
Li Zhen, Chairman of Gotion, delivered the opening speech: "The official launch of the first battery pack today stands as a testament to the hard work and ingenuity displayed by all the factory's employees.We look forward to collaborating with European enterprises to promote carbon emission reduction in the EU and foster the dynamic growth of both new energy vehicles and industries."
Mr. Stephan Weil, Governor of Lower Saxony, expressed in his speech that engines were the most important parts of fuel vehicles in the past, but in the future, batteries will be the core components of electric vehicles. The Göttingen factory project has a distinct advantage as it allows Gotion to manufacture power battery products that cater to the broad market demand in Göttingen for decades to come.
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