BMW is expanding an innovative process for reclaiming and reusing EV raw materials in building a brand-new €10 million ($10.4 million) cell recycling center. The new German plant will work to radically slash costs in building EVs and push the company closer to a closed-loop battery cell production.

BMW is developing what it calls “direct recycling,” where recovered raw materials aren’t reverted to their original state but rather fed back into the cell production cycle at BMW’s battery cell competence centers. The method replaces energy-intensive chemical and thermal processing methods and gives BMW quick access to pricey raw materials – lithium, cobalt, as well as graphite, manganese, nickel, and copper – saving money and time to get these materials back into use.

The direct recycling method involves discharging batteries before opening the battery cell cans and removing the electrode. Then after the electrodes dry, they are shredded, separating the active material from the conducting foils, which can then be regenerated and processed further.

The method was developed by BMW Group scientists at similar centers in Munich and Parsdorf, Germany, but with the new factory, it will be implemented on a larger scale. Once the processes are finalized, battery cell material in the mid-double-digit tonne range can be recycled per year, the company stated.

The new recycling center will be built in Kirchroth, in the Straubing-Bogen district of Lower Bavaria. Installation work at the building is already scheduled to begin in the second half of 2025. Once completed, validation of the recycling method in near-series processes will get underway, BMW stated.

Read more:
BMW is now filling up its new diesel cars with vegetable oil

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A new Bloomberg report cites that Volkswagen may in fact be working on a deal to keep its factories in Germany open.

The report stated that the automaker is considering keeping its plants up and running while reinstating job security agreements until 2030, with the tradeoff being that workers would forgo bonus payments, according to an anonymous source.

Earlier this month, a hundred thousand workers walked off at nine Volkswagen factories across Germany, including its EV-only factory, bringing assembly lines to a grinding halt in the battle over the slashed pay, lost jobs, and the automaker’s future. The strike came after weeks of collective bargaining negotiations in which Volkswagen didn’t back down from its plan to potentially cut thousands of jobs and close factories in Germany – a first in the automaker’s 87-year history in the country. Volkswagen plans to close at least three factories, lay off thousands of workers, and trim pay for those remaining by 10%, all as it fights to stay alive amid stiff competition from China. Volkswagen announced that it would officially close its Audi plant in Brussels where it makes the Audi Q8 E-Tron.

Since, CEO Oliver Blume has been locked in an intense dispute with IG Metall, with management pushing for major cuts while workers are threatening more strikes if a fair deal isn’t met – but now there seems to be a small glimmer of hope.

Cost-cutting measures on the table include moving production of the Golf from Germany’s Wolfsburg factory to Mexico, and ending production of VW-branded electric vehicles in Zwickau to trim capacity, the report said.

Of course, Bloomberg noted that the details of the deal could change and the talks could still end up without an agreement, so Volkswagen and IG Metall are still on shaky ground. But an agreement would prevent massive walkouts, but the latest round of proposals certainly aren’t enough to pull VW out of its hole. The previous plan to lay off workers, cut wages, and close the three plants would have helped save €17 billion ($17.6 billion).

Bloomberg writes:

Employees foregoing bonus payments and VW reshuffling production won’t be sufficient to save an additional €4 billion annually, which management needs to bolster margins, UBS analyst Patrick Hummel said Thursday. “We’re not sure this is really the final package,” he told Bloomberg Television.

From the deal being discussed now, production of VW’s ID.3 hatchback and ID.4 SUV would end in Zwickau and shift to Wolfsburg and Emden.

This comes at a time when VW is radically restructuring its business to cut costs, while seeking to streamline production and development processes, shaving off months on the development cycles of specific projects to help tighten the belts, all while rethinking its EV retail model to stay more competitive. Volkswagen has been facing a steep decline in sales in China, which is its core market, while simultaneously facing challenges from BYD and other Chinese automakers entering the European market.

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Archer Aviation announced it has completed construction of a new 400,000 square-foot eVTOL manufacturing facility in Georgia and is already implementing tooling to begin building its proprietary Midnight aircraft in early 2025. Longtime partner Stellantis assisted in the development of the new facility, and Archer will look to the global OEM to help it scale eVTOL production in the US through the end of the decade.

Archer ($ACHR) is a Santa Clara, California-based aviation developer that specializes in the design and development of electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, particularly for use in urban air mobility (UAM) networks such as air taxi services.

We followed the company for years now, as it has established new partnerships with companies all over the world to develop and implement networks of sustainable air travel using its flagship Midnight eVTOL aircraft. One of Archer’s long-standing partners has been Stellantis, which signed an agreement to become the exclusive manufacturer of Archer’s eVTOL technology at a new facility erected in the US. More specifically, Covington, Georgia.

During the time of the January 2023 assembly plant announcement, Stellantis shared it would provide Archer with up to $150 million in equity capital to use at its discretion through 2024, subject to achieving certain business milestones this year.

The following June, Archer and Stellantis shared a progress update that included renderings of the pending eVTOL facility,  which was underway across roughly 100 acres in Georgia. Archer and Stellantis also shared plans to leverage their respective strengths – eVTOL design and development and high-volume vehicle manufacturing, respectively – to rapidly scale US production and achieve local UAM commercialization.

By August 2023, Archer shared that it had secured an additional $215 million equity investment, led by Stellantis, but also included other notable companies like Boeing, United, and ARK Invest. Since then, Archer’s Midnight eVTOL has been awarded a Special Airworthiness Certificate from the Federal Aviation Administration, meaning the aircraft meets all FAA safety requirements to begin flight tests.

Today, Archer announced its new facility has completed construction and eVTOL production is right around the corner in early 2025. That being said, the initial rollout will be small at first and the aviation specialist will once again look to Stellantis to help it scale its operation.

Archer’s eVTOL plant is complete, production to begin soon

This morning, Archer Aviation confirmed its eVTOL aircraft manufacturing facility, which it calls “ARC,” has completed construction, and the company has received a certificate of occupancy to begin its operations in Georgia near the Covington Municipal Airport.

Following a ribbon-cutting ceremony, Archer says it has already begun its tooling load-in to begin initial Midnight eVTOL manufacturing, which is expected to commence early next year. Although Archer now has a 400,000 sq. ft home in Georgia, its initial eVTOL production goals will be small as it looks to evaluate its practices before scaling.

The company’s current goal is to ramp production to two aircraft per month by the end of 2025. That translates to about 15 to 24 builds next year. Archer founder and CEO Adam Goldstein spoke about the company’s eVTOL production milestone:

The completion of this facility is a testament to the state of the industry—shifting from R&D into commercialization. With construction on ARC now complete, our team is focused on the start of production planned for early next year. From there, it’s all about execution and scaling. I’m incredibly proud of the Archer team and our partners for getting this done so fast and on budget and can’t wait to see our facility begin producing aircraft.

Archer credits its partner Stellantis with helping it get this far and expects that business relationship to grow as scaled Midnight eVTOL production moves closer than ever to fruition. Looking ahead, Archer said Stellantis will continue to contribute capital, advanced manufacturing technology, production expertise, and experienced personnel to help eVTOL production grow. The goal is to scale the facility to 650 aircraft annually by 2030.

That being said, Archer and Stellantis are still finalizing the agreement announced in 2023 that would give the latter exclusive contract manufacturing rights to produce the Midnight eVTOLs. Per previous partnership announcements, Archer’s Midnight eVTOL has a growing order book for air taxi networks worldwide, so the faster it can scale its US manufacturing, the better.