Europe’s largest factory for commercial vehicle battery systems has opened in Darmstadt (Germany). Akasol's Gigafactory 1 has a production capacity of up to 1 GWh in the first expansion stage.
Akasol Gigafactory 1
Akasol
Battery manufacturer Akasol has opened its Gigafactory 1 in Darmstadt. Production at the new fully automated factory includes lithium-ion battery systems for commercial vehicles with an annual production capacity of 1 GWh in the first expansion stage. With the commissioning of further production lines, production capacity is to be increased to up to 2.5 GWh in the coming year. Depending on customer demand, it can be expanded to up to 5 GWh. This would make the new Akasol Gigafactory 1 "by far the largest production site for lithium-ion battery systems in commercial vehicle applications in Europe and, when fully expanded, will be able to equip more than 10,000 commercial vehicles with battery systems per year," according to the company. Akasol reports to have invested more than 100 million euros at this site.
The Akasol campus covers an area of more than 20,000 m² in the southwest of Darmstadt. The 15,000-square-meter, two-story production, assembly and logistics hall also houses a testing and validation center for testing cells, modules and systems. A 600-kWp solar plant feeds the production facility and offices as well as Hesse’s largest charging station park for electric vehicles with over 60 charging stations. The new offices of the 7,500-m² headquarters next to the production hall can accommodate up to 350 employees.