BMW move towards electric car production

BMW's Electric Car

Germany are one the world's leaders in developing and using clean technology, so it comes as little surprise that its very own car giant BMW has taken a big green step in developing a clean machine.

BMW are to build a progressive electric vehicle at its Leipzig manufacturing plant using major components from Bavaria. This clear commitment to Germany as the home of production for its revolutionary new vehicle speaks volumes about the nation's energy ambitions.

Slowly but surely BMW is developing the knowledge and capacity to deliver a small all-electric car by 2013, and this started last year when the company began leasing an electric two-passenger version of the Mini Cooper to about 600 drivers in California, New York, and New Jersey. This program was aimed at helping BMW learn about real-world driving and charging experiences.

Commitment to electric vehicles

Beginning in 2011, a similar number of drivers will lease BMW's next electric test vehicle, the four-passenger ActiveE, a concept EV recently debuted at the Detroit Auto Show - essentially an electric-drive version of the BMW 1-series.

Other car giants such as Honda and Toyota are famous for their presence in the green car market, but BMW's serious commitment to produce electric vehicles will be viewed as a major development for the industry.

Ramping up production

The Leipzig plant itself (above) is quite something. Designed in 2005 by Zaha Hadid Architects and opened that same year, it features a production line rolling right through the center of the factory administration offices. It remains BMW's most flexible factory space, so it should have no trouble ramping up production of the electric vehicles quickly.

BMW chairman Norbert Reithofer seems pretty excited about the whole thing: "The BMW Group will build the car of the future in Leipzig with high-tech innovations from Bavaria. The main reasons behind this decision are the qualities that Germany has to offer: we have a tried and tested production network here and high levels of education and outstanding competencies at our disposal."

Let's hope the high levels of German efficiency that goes into their regular cars still applies to the electric ones.

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Daniel Jones

Daniel is a Politics and Philosophy graduate from Cardiff University where he also worked as a section editor on the award winning student newspaper. After university he joined an IT support company where he was a B2B online writer. He loves anything to do with sport and joined GDS in July 2009.

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