According to media reports, Mercedes-Benz CTO Markus Schaefer stated on July 8 that the company will wait to see if demand for electric vehicles rebounds before increasing battery production capacity.
In 2022, Mercedes-Benz announced that by 2030, the company would need over 200 GWh of battery capacity and planned to build eight battery factories worldwide in partnership, with four located in Europe.
However, due to current market demand for electric vehicles being lower than many automakers expected, Mercedes said earlier this year that it now expects electric vehicles (including hybrids) to account for 50% of its total sales by 2030, five years later than the previous forecast of 2025.
On July 8, Schaefer stated that the 200 GWh capacity expectation was based on the assumption that by 2030, the approximately 2 million vehicles sold annually by Mercedes would all be electric vehicles. Schaefer said, "Is 200 GWh of battery capacity still necessary? This is a question that requires time to decide."
In 2022, Mercedes signed a supply agreement with Chinese battery manufacturer CATL, whose Hungarian factory with a capacity of 100 GWh will supply batteries to Mercedes, but the scale of this deal has not been disclosed.
Mercedes will also receive batteries from a French factory with a capacity of 40 GWh through the joint venture ACC, in which the company holds a 30% stake. Due to sluggish demand for electric vehicles, ACC paused plans last month to build two more factories in Germany and Italy. Additionally, Mercedes has other battery suppliers in the U.S. and China.
Schaefer said, "We are relatively flexible. When our demand becomes clearer, we will consider the next steps." He also mentioned Mercedes' current supplier relationships and added, "This is enough to meet our needs for the next phase."
Mercedes has not reduced its investment in electrifying its product line. Schaefer stated that besides plans to update vehicles to comply with emission regulations, Mercedes will not invest heavily in internal combustion engine vehicles.
Despite this, Mercedes CEO Ola Kaellenius said in February this year that the company would ensure its internal combustion engine lineup remains competitive in the next decade to meet demand.
