The Mini Countryman is now being produced at BMW in Leipzig alongside models from the parent brand. It is the first vehicle from the traditional British brand to be produced at a BMW plant, said Board Member for Production Milan Nedeljkovic on Friday at the official start of production. Around 100,000 Mini Countryman are to be built each year.
The new car means an expansion for the Leipzig plant: in addition to the current workforce of around 5800, 900 new employees are to be hired by the middle of next year. Plant manager Petra Peterhänsel said that capacity in Leipzig had been increased from 250,000 vehicles per year to 350,000. The Group has invested around 700 million euros in this. A further 800 million euros are to be invested in the expansion of e-component production.
The Mini Countryman marks the return of electromobility to Leipzig. The vehicle is offered with combustion engines, but also as a purely electric car. Mini brand director Stefanie Wurst said that next year, around two thirds of vehicles will be produced with combustion engines and one third with electric drive. By 2030, all Minis should be electric.
The Leipzig plant once played a pioneering role in e-mobility within the BMW Group with the i3 and i8 models. However, the last i3 rolled off the production line last year and the i8 had already been discontinued.
BMW is focusing on the strategy of being able to produce all drive types - combustion, hybrid and electric - on one line. In addition to the Mini Countryman, the BMW 1 Series, 2 Series Gran Coupé and 2 Series Active Tourer models are also produced in Leipzig.
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