Gotion High-tech's factory in Germany went into production after the Volkswagen-backed Chinese lithium battery giant acquired the facility through a takeover two years ago.

The plant, located in Göttingen in central Germany, is Gotion's first in Europe and saw the first locally-produced battery pack roll off the assembly line on September 16, the battery maker announced.

The milestone marks Gotion's achievement of localized production and supply in Europe, with its batteries officially becoming "Made in Germany," it said.

The total capacity of the plant is planned to be 20 GWh, which is expected to be completed in four phases, and when fully completed, it is expected to realize an annual output of 2 billion euros, said Steven Cai, CTO of Gotion.

The Göttingen plant has already received a large number of European orders and is expected to be able to supply European customers from October, with actual capacity reaching 5 GWh by mid-2024, Gotion said.

The plant's battery pack products will be used in commercial vehicles, energy storage systems and passenger cars, and the facility will also serve as a research and development center, logistics center and after-sales service point for Gotion's European base.

Gotion announced on July 16, 2021, that it has signed a contract with the Bosch Group to acquire the latter's plant in Göttingen for its first production operation in Europe.

The plant, built in 1960, covers more than 170,000 square meters of land and 40,000 square meters of floor space, according to a statement at the time.