The business case and the need to have a plant ready to go is now more important than it already was.
The tie-up between Volkswagen and Ford Motor Co. over battery-powered and autonomous cars makes a stronger case for VW’s planned Chattanooga electric vehicle plant, an analyst says.
“The business case and the need to have a plant ready to go is now more important than it already was,” said Karl Brauer, executive publisher of Kelley Blue Book.
On Friday, the two automakers unveiled plans to cooperate related to the development of electric and autonomous vehicles.
Volkswagen is to break ground later this year on the new $800 million electric vehicle production facility in Chattanooga. The company will build a battery-powered SUV starting in 2022 at the new plant that will go up adjacent to its existing factory that builds the Passat sedan and Atlas SUV.