BMW to open carbon fiber plant in Washington state for its electric car
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BMW Group wants production of its upcoming electric car to be a truly international affair. The carmaker is pairing with a German carbon fiber manufacturer to open a new plant in Washington state, the companies said Tuesday.
The factory in Moses Lake, about two hours west of Spokane, will get a $100-million initial investment and will create at least 80 new jobs, the companies said. The site, which will use renewable hydropower, was also attractive because of the state’s “competitive energy costs,” existing utilities, favorable infrastructure and agreeable local government.
The German automaker, known officially as Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, will work with SGL Group to manufacture ultra-lightweight plastics reinforced by carbon fiber for its electric Megacity Vehicle. The car, announced in February, will be launched by 2015 and is described as a vehicle best used “for urban mobility.”
The vehicle will be assembled in Leipzig, Germany, along with the BMW 1 series and the BMW X1. But the raw material for the carbon fibers will be produced in Japan before the Moses Lake facility converts it. Then, everything moves to Germany, where a station in Wackersdorf will process the fibers and a plant in Landshut assembles them.
SGL controls 51% of the joint venture, while BMW controls the rest.
-- Tiffany Hsu
