BMW AG‘s R4.2 billion investment over five years to electrify its Rosslyn plant to manufacture semi-electric vehicles represents another initiative by the motor industry to adapt to the changing global market.
BMW AG board member for production Milan Nedeljković said in a statement yesterday their South African business had become a mainstay of the group’s global automotive network, and to mark the 50 years since the local plant became BMW AG’s first foreign facility, the investment would be made to manufacture the BMW X3 as a plug-in hybrid for global export from 2024.
The investment would also be accompanied by specialist training for more than 300 employees at the plant.
Currently, only two of South Africa’s major vehicle manufacturers make vehicles that can run on electricity (EVs). Toyota SA makes the Corolla Cross traditional hybrid, in which a petrol engine continuously regenerates an electric motor. The second is Mercedes-Benz SA, which manufactures a C-Class plug-in hybrid, the electric motor of which needs recharging from an external power source. None makes ICE-free, all-electric vehicles, data from the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa showed.
“The investment will electrify yet another site in the BMW Group production network, in line with the global BMW iFACTORY master plan for production of the future. It marks a further step in advancing the development of efficient, digitalised, resource-friendly production,” said Nedeljković in a statement,
The Rosslyn plant has produced more than 1.6 million vehicles to date, and exported them to more than 40 countries worldwide, including 14 nations in Africa. The plant currently produces the combustion engine BMW 3 series, with a capacity of up to 75 000 units a year, according to its website. Export destinations include the US, Taiwan, Japan, Singapore, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Australia, Sub-Saharan Africa and Canada.
The plant has been a cornerstone of BMW 3 Series production for decades, and it has been manufacturing the BMW X3 since 2018 – the best-selling BMW.
“Its establishment marked the start of BMW’s globalisation. Today, the BMW Group sells vehicles in more than 140 countries around the world and operates manufacturing facilities in 15,” said Nedeljković.
The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition published a green paper on the introduction of electric vehicles to the local market in May 2021, and was due to follow up with a policy white paper later that year, but this has not been released.
In a discussion paper Naamsa said: “Driving a meaningful NEV transition in South Africa will require a careful balance between incentivising a sustained shift in domestic market demand to NEVs; establishing an aligned, renewable energy-based charging infrastructure; and supporting a shift in South African vehicle production, away from ICE (internal combustion engine) vehicles to a mix of hybrid electric vehicles [HEVs], plug-in hybrid electric vehicles [PHEVs], and battery electric vehicles [BEVs].”
Nedeljković said the issue of resource conservation was important to them and since 2015 the Rosslyn plant had sourced part of its energy from a nearby biogas plant (Bio2Watt), steadily reducing its CO2 footprint.
It also partners various organisations so that the waste it produces is reused. Together with Envirolite, for example, it ensures that scrap polystyrene is reprocessed for use as a building material. This has enabled the construction of more than 650 low-cost houses since the project was launched two years ago.
Last year the BMW Group also opened more offices at its Rosslyn plant for its global IT hub. The offices now employ some 2 000 people who provide global IT services for the group.
BUSINESS REPORT