The lorries complete up to 12 eight-kilometre round trips per day, covering a total of around 100 kilometres daily. They are tasked with transporting battery cells and modules for e-drive production, primarily for the MINI Countryman Electric and other electric vehicle models. Powered by lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery systems, the trucks deliver 610 horsepower and are three times more efficient than their diesel counterparts. They also produce no local emissions during operation.
Since 2021, BMW Plant Leipzig has been producing high-voltage batteries, and since 2024, the facility has been responsible for the entire battery production process for BMW’s fifth-generation batteries. The plant employs around 1,000 workers in battery production and manufactures up to 300,000 high-voltage batteries annually.
The introduction of the electric lorries is part of BMW’s Green Transport Logistics Project, which seeks to reduce emissions in its production and sales network. Besides using battery-electric trucks, BMW is trialling other low-emission technologies, such as biofuels like HVO100 and bio-LNG. The company is also involved in research projects focused on hydrogen fuel for trucks.
BMW aims to reduce CO2 emissions across the vehicle lifecycle by 40% by 2030, compared to 2019 levels.