While the Jaguar I-Pace crossover boasts excellence, its sales performance has been underwhelming. Consequently, Jaguar is pausing production of this model, not due to excess inventory, but because of a shortage of batteries required for manufacturing. This temporary shutdown will commence next week.
Jaguar Land Rover has notified suppliers and employees that the I-Pace production at the Magna Steyr plant in Graz, Austria will cease for a week starting on Monday, February 17. The primary reason behind this decision is LG Chem’s struggles in meeting the battery supply demands required for production sustainability.
In an email to The Drive, a spokesperson for JLR stated, “Jaguar Land Rover has adjusted production schedules of the Jaguar I-Pace in Graz due to temporary supplier scheduling issues. We are collaborating with the supplier to address this matter and minimize any negative impact on customer orders.”
Contrary to expectations, the battery supply interruption is not linked to the global coronavirus outbreak. The batteries powering the I-Pace are produced at LG Chem’s factory in Wroclaw, Poland, a supplier to multiple automakers, each facing issues with the plant.
Audi, Jaguar Land Rover, and Mercedes-Benz all rely on this Polish facility for manufacturing lithium-ion batteries used in their E-Tron, I-Pace, and EQC electric crossovers respectively. Production adjustments have been made by these automakers due to quality control concerns at LG Chem’s Wroclaw plant.
In 2017, it was anticipated that global battery manufacturing capacity would double by 2021. However, the soaring demand for batteries in the automotive industry still anticipates widespread shortages. Automakers have been racing to secure partnerships with suppliers like LG Chem and Panasonic or establishing new battery production ventures to mitigate reliance on existing supply chains. Despite these efforts, challenges persist, and there is no escaping the limited global availability of vital battery components like cobalt and lithium essential for lithium-ion battery production.
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