The German automaker is the third to announce a production of electric vehicles in Mexico. The first was the American Ford, which at the end of 2020 started production of the Mustang Mach-E at its complex in Cuautitlán, State of Mexico. Months later, in April 2021, General Motors revealed that as of 2023, it would begin production of an electric model. It is a fully electric version of its Blazer SUV in Ramos Arizpe, Coahuila.
The German manufacturer did not reveal the amount of investment that it will allocate to the reconversion of its Mexican plant, but in Brussels, Belgium, where it assembles the e-Tron, it has invested 600 million euros since 2016 to enable the body and paint shop, the assembly line and build a warehouse for the production of batteries.
In addition to the Brussels plant, Audi is also transforming its plant in Ingolstadt, Germany, where it currently assembles the Q2, A3, A4 and A5 models, to power. By 2029, it plans to complete the conversion of its plant in Györ, Hungary.
The German manufacturer said at the end of 2021 that advance payments for future vehicle projects had been increased once again, bringing the total to around €37 billion.
Although sales of cars with some degree of electrification in Mexico represented only 4.6% of total sales in 2021, the change towards more environmentally friendly mobility schemes is gaining strength in production processes.
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador recently promised that by 2030, 50% of the vehicles assembled in the country will be zero polluting emissions. At the end of 2021 Mexico, the production of electric models totaled 58,292 units, just 1.9% of the total.
The Audi plant has the capacity to assemble up to 150,000 units.