Elm Analytics - Automotive Supply Chain Risk Digest #267 - March 18 - 24, 2022

CHANGE IN MANAGEMENT

Ford continues to restructure, moving Argo AI and Ford Autonomous Vehicles under its Ford Next division.

INDUSTRY DIRECTIONS

Chinese companies will establish 24k battery swap stations by 2025 to supplement regular charging.

MERGERS, VENTURES, ACQUISITIONS

Chinese EV maker BYD is teaming up with Shell in Europe and China to develop new mobility services and a new vehicle charging network.

VW aims to invest $7.1B in North America over the next five years. The investment is part of their goal to introduce 25 new EVs by 2030.

VW will also form JVs with Huayou Cobalt and Tsingshan Group to secure nickel and cobalt for EV batteries.

Japan's Suzuki Motor has signed a deal with 'flying car' firm SkyDrive to develop electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles.

OPENING

LG Energy Solution is investing $1.7B to build a new battery plant in Holland, Michigan. The plant will create 1.2K jobs and open in 2024.

LG Energy Solution is also investing $1.4B into a new battery plant in Arizona. The plant aims to open by 2024 and will be the company's first US factory to make cylindrical cells.

Stellantis and LG Energy Solutions will build a Canadian EV battery plant in Windsor, Ontario. The 4.5M sq ft plant will begin production in Q1 2024 and break ground later this year. Stellantis is still planning to announce a second battery plant in the US. It announced a JV with Samsung previously.

Automotive Cells Company (ACC) will convert Stellantis' engine plant in Termoli, Italy, to produce EV batteries. ACC is a joint venture of Stellantis, Total, and Mercedes-Benz and expects the facility to have a capacity of 40GWh.

CATL considers Canada, Mexico, and the US as possible locations for a new $5B 80GWh EV battery plant. A North American facility would allow CATL to avoid expensive tariffs. The Chinese company currently controls 30% of the EV battery market.

Graphex Technologies and Emerald Energy Solutions announced a JV to build a graphite processing facility. The 150k sq ft facility will produce EV battery anode material in Warren, Michigan.

PRODUCTION DECREASE

Volvo cut 2022 production forecasts due to chip shortages. This coming week, the company canceled 5 to 8 shifts at its Torslanda factory near Gothenburg, Sweden.

RECALLS

GM recalled 740k vehicles in the US due to blinding headlights, while Ford expanded a 2020 F-150 recall over leaking brake fluid by 196k vehicles.

REGULATION

The Office of the United States Trade Representative reinstated 352 of 549 tariff exclusions on Chinese imports. The list includes auto parts such as switches, cooling pumps, mirrors, and speed sensors.

SHUTDOWN

Renault shut down its Avtoframos plant in Moscow, Russia. The company faced rising criticism after it resumed production during Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

This week, Ford plants in Germany and Spain saw production disruptions due to parts shortages from Ukraine and other places. The war in Ukraine has prevented the automaker from sourcing a 12.3" infotainment screen for the latest Focus.

Audi is also halting production at several of its plants "for days or weeks" due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The automaker expects "significantly longer delivery times" for its Q4 e-tron, A4/A5, A6/A7, TT, and Q7/Q8 models.

Mazda is halting production at both of its Japanese plants from April 4-5 due to parts supply disruptions.

SUPPLY CHAIN

Marketplace: How Russian sanctions could speed up the corrosion of globalization