Volkswagen has said that South Korean manufacturer SK Innovation (SKI) completes a group of strategic suppliers for battery cells in all major world regions. The companies SK Innovation, LG Chem, Samsung and CATL have been named as partners for the long-term supply of cells for VW's rapidly growing electric fleet based on the Modular Electric Toolkit (MEB).

SKI will supply the batteries for North America and a share of the batteries for the production of Volkswagen Group full- electric vehicles in Europe.

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Within the framework of its 'Roadmap E' strategy, the Volkswagen Group brands plan to bring 50 new fullly electric models onto the roads by 2025. The group needs battery capacity in excess of 150 GWh per year through 2025 just to equip its own electric fleet. That, it says, corresponds to an annual capacity of at least four "Gigafactories" for battery cells.

The Volkswagen Group has taken LG Chem, Samsung and SKI on board as strategic partners for Europe. These partners will safeguard battery supplies from 2019. In addition, SKI will cover the group's demand on the North American market from 2022. CATL was nominated as the strategic partner for China, and will supply batteries for the Group's own electric fleet from 2019.

Dr. Stefan Sommer, Group Board Member responsible for Components and Procurement of Volkswagen AG, said: "With SK Innovation, LG Chem, Samsung and CATL, we have found strong partners for the long-term supply of cells for our electric vehicles. Together with our suppliers, we will ensure that the rapidly growing electric fleet of the Volkswagen Group receives the best possible batteries – in all the variants we need to meet customer-specific and market-specific requirements. This lays the foundation for the transformation of the Volkswagen Group towards e-mobility."

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