Volkswagen Has Ordered $48 Billion Worth Of Electric Car Batteries

The Volkswagen Group has secured battery-purchasing contracts worth 40 billion euros ($48 billion) for its upcoming range of electric vehicles.

Fortune reports that these contracts almost match the entire market value of Tesla and are worth double what they were just a number of weeks ago.

Although Tesla has enjoyed a significant headstart in the race towards electrification, automaking giants like VW Group and Daimler are making up ground thanks to their huge size. In fact, VW produces more vehicles in four days than Tesla does in a year and the German conglomerate is making the most of its firepower. It plans to be selling up to 3 million all-electric vehicles annually by 2025.

Tesla has a serious fight on its hands

“By 2020 we will offer our customers more than 25 new electric models and more than 20 plug-in hybrids,” Volkswagen chief executive Herbert Diess recently said.

“In just a few years’ time, then, across all brands and regions, we aim to put the world’s largest fleet of electric vehicles on the road.”

The first model in the VW Group’s electric future will be the Audi e-tron SUV, set to reach the production line in August. Next year, the Model S-rivalling Porsche Mission E will land and be followed up by VW’s plethora of I.D. models which rely solely on electric power.

The message is clear. VW, and others, have the ability to swiftly build hundreds of thousands of EVs at the flick of a switch. Tesla meanwhile is still dealing with Model 3 bottlenecks.