Summary
BMW says Samsung SDI will supply Gen6 battery cells from Europe and LG Energy Solution from the US, with supply from both partners due to begin in the late 2020s. The agreements expand the company’s regional cell-supplier network.
BMW Group has contracted Samsung SDI in Europe and LG Energy Solution in the United States as additional suppliers of cells for its sixth-generation (Gen6) high-voltage batteries. BMW says supply from the partners’ established plants in those regions is due to begin in the late 2020s.
The agreements extend the company’s effort to source components near vehicle production. BMW says its European-produced battery cells will come from CATL, EVE Energy and Samsung SDI; LG Energy Solution is also set to supply cells in the US.
Cell sourcing and battery assembly
Battery cells are the units combined to form a high-voltage battery system for an electric vehicle. BMW describes that battery as a core vehicle component affecting properties including range and charging performance. The new supplier agreements concern cells; BMW separately says Gen6 high-voltage batteries will be assembled at five facilities near its vehicle plants: Irlbach-Straßkirchen in Lower Bavaria, Debrecen in Hungary, Shenyang in China, Woodruff in the US and San Luis Potosí in Mexico.
The company’s stated “local for local” approach links those regional sourcing and assembly networks with vehicle production. BMW says shorter transport distances can support supply security, while drawing on suppliers across regions helps maintain a diversified network.
A wider regional supplier network
Adding cell suppliers in Europe and the US broadens BMW’s regional sourcing arrangements for Gen6 batteries. The company presents this as a way to strengthen value creation in both regions while retaining a global portfolio of technology partners. Those are strategic aims, rather than quantified outcomes in the announcement.
BMW also describes localising battery-cell production as a complex, investment-intensive process that depends on supplier partnerships and time to establish industrial operations. The new supply is therefore scheduled to start in the late 2020s, rather than immediately.