The Macan will be Porsche’s first all-electric SUV
The Supervisory Board of Porsche AG has decided to manufacture the next generation of the Macan as a fully electric series. This will be the first all-electric compact SUV from Porsche, and is due to roll off the assembly line at the start of 2020.
The development represents an expansion of the Porsche range in the field of electromobility: the Taycan – the first purely electrically driven sports car from Porsche – will be launched to market at the end of 2019, followed shortly thereafter by its derivative, the Taycan Cross Turismo.
Oliver Blume, Chairman of the Board of Management of Porsche AG said: “Electromobility and Porsche go together perfectly; not just because they share a high-efficiency approach, but especially because of their sporty character. By 2022 we will be investing more than six billion euros in electric mobility, and by 2025 50% of all new Porsche vehicles could have an electric drive system. Nevertheless, over the next ten years we will focus on a drive mix consisting of even further optimised petrol engines, plug-in hybrid models, and purely electrically operated sports cars. Our aim is to take a pioneering role in technology, and for this reason we will continue to consistently align the company with the mobility of the future.”
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The decision to manufacture the next generation of the Macan at the company’s Leipzig site was taken as early as the beginning of July last year. Making this investment in electromobility at the Leipzig site creates the opportunity to produce fully electric vehicles on the existing production line in future. The next generation of the Macan fires the starting pistol for electrification. Like the Taycan, this compact SUV features 800-volt technology and is based on the Porsche PPE architecture (Premium Platform Electric) developed in collaboration with Audi AG – highlighting the future viability of the site and enhancing its flexibility and efficiency even further.
Porsche Leipzig GmbH started series production of the Cayenne SUV in 2002, with 259 employees. Since then, the site has been continually developed to become one of the most advanced and sustainable production facilities in the automotive industry. The Macan model signified a revolution right back in 2011, and is a real success story: when it was launched, the Leipzig plant was expanded into a “full plant”, which included its own body shop and paint shop. When the factory started operations in February 2014, 40,000 units per year of the compact SUV were planned; today it produces more than 90,000 units annually for global markets.
What is currently the final expansion stage was put into operation two years ago, making it possible for the Panamera series to now also be fully manufactured in Leipzig, and bringing employee numbers up to today’s figure of more than 4,000. Since the groundbreaking ceremony in February 2000, Porsche has invested more than 1.3 billion euros in development in Leipzig.
