Daimler Plans High-Tech Vehicle Battery Factory

Another automaker is ramping up to start churning out tons of vehicle batteries. This time it’s Daimler, which is looking to become a powerhouse player in the electric car market. Smart is going fully electric in the United States, while Mercedes-Benz is looking to add a flood of 10 new electric models by 2022.

To keep up with the growing demand, Daimler has begun work on what it claims will be one of the biggest and most advanced battery factory in the world. That being said, it will be dwarfed by Tesla’s Gigafactory in Nevada, but is the second of four planned facilities. The company press release says it will be over 860,000 square feet. Daimler is using subsidiary Accumotive to make lithium-ion batteries.

The new facility will be in Kamenz, and should cost about 500 million euros to build. In a cute little move, company leaders and others laid a vehicle battery as the foundation stone, which makes for really great PR.

Germany’s Federal Chancellor, Dr. Angela Merkel was also at the event. Under her leadership, the country has been pushing to be a leader in clean energy. Obviously, this is an important step in the process.

The internal combustion engine isn’t dead, but it is having to share space more and more with electric motors.