Volkswagen hikes battery cell demand in EV expansion push: Sources

<p style="text-align: center;"><img title="1615430335104080.jpg" alt="6.jpg" src="/ueditor/php/upload/image/20210311/1615430335104080.jpg"/></p><p>&nbsp;Volkswagen&nbsp;requires about 300 gigawatt hours (GWh) worth of battery cells a year by the end of the decade for its ambitious rollout of&nbsp;electric vehicles&nbsp;in Europe, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters.<br/><br/>The supply chain update is part of the world&#39;s second-largest carmaker&#39;s strategy to raise the share of fully electric vehicles in Europe to more than 70% by 2030 at its core brand, details of which were unveiled last week.<br/><br/>So far, Volkswagen, which sources batteries from&nbsp;LG Chem&nbsp;, Samsung SDI, SK Innovation and CATL, expects annual demand in Europe to be more than 150 GWh from 2025 and to be at a similar level in Asia.<br/><br/>Chief Executive Herbert Diess and Thomas Schmall, Volkswagen&#39;s board member in charge of technology, will unveil details of its battery and charging infrastructure strategy during a Power Day event scheduled for March 15.<br/><br/>Volkswagen declined to comment.</p>