Volkswagen announced today that it plans to invest 2.5 billion euros (Note: currently about 19.525 billion RMB) in China to further expand its production and innovation base in Hefei, Anhui Province.
It is reported that Volkswagen will use this move to continue to strengthen its local research and development capabilities and speed up the production of two Volkswagen brand smart electric vehicles jointly developed with Xpeng Motors. Volkswagen is currently developing the first electric vehicle architecture CMP specifically for the Chinese market. It plans to develop at least four electric models based on this platform starting in 2026, targeting the compact entry-level market.
Volkswagen will also develop entry-level A-class models based on the CMP platform for the mainstream market. The original MEB platform will also be upgraded to MEB+, which can achieve faster charging speeds and longer cruising range while using standard batteries. At the same time, smart driving will also be “significantly improved.”
As Volkswagen builds electric vehicles in Hefei, the Hefei production base will help bring the technology to market about 30 percent faster, said Bei Ruide, a member of Volkswagen China’s management board.
According to previous reports, Volkswagen announced during the 2024 annual press conference last month that the company will launch 11 new electric models by 2027, including two models jointly built with Xpeng Motors, VW/Xpeng 1 and VW/Xpeng 2, these two models are expected to be officially launched in 2026.
Official pictures show that the product lineup includes ID.BUZZ LWB, ID.7, ID.7 Tourer, ID.GTI Concept, ID.2ALL, and ID.2 ALL SUV models, entry-level models E-Volkswagen, and ID.4 PA, A-Main SUVe and many other products.
