Volkswagen isn’t planning to list its battery startup PowerCo on the stock market until all of its factories are operational and its batteries are in use, according to a recent statement from a chairperson at the company.
Thomas Schmall, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of PowerCo and Volkswagen AG Board Member, told Reuters that the Volkswagen subsidiary wouldn’t consider an Initial Public Offering (IPO) until all of the company’s factories are open and it’s utilizing its unified battery cells in vehicles. The statement means that Volkswagen’s battery arm won’t go public for at least a few years under its current factory plans.
“In a second step, an IPO remains an option for the future,” Schmall said. “However, this will only become an issue once the factories are up and running and the standardised cell is in use.”
PowerCo plans to use its unified battery cell, a single cell design in three separate battery chemistry offerings, in 80 percent of its EVs starting in 2025. The Volkswagen subsidiary will produce the cells at its factory in Salzgitter, Germany, along with future plants in Valencia, Spain, and St. Thomas, in Ontario, Canada — expected to open in 2025, 2026 and 2027, respectively.
With these three factories, the company is aiming for a battery cell production capacity of 240 GWh per year by 2030, and it’s targeting 20 billion euros (~$21.7 billion) in sales by the same year. Under these plans, the Volkswagen battery unit likely wouldn’t be able to reach the aforementioned conditions for an IPO until at least 2026, or more likely 2027, once its third plant has opened.
In the past, PowerCo has avoided talks of a potential IPO, though it previously planned to make the business “investor-ready” by 2024. Last year was also the lowest level of IPO activity on the market since 2016, while some say EV sentiment has also dipped.
Schmall also told Reuters that PowerCo is no longer considering a second battery cell factory in Europe, at least not at the current time.
“At the moment this is not on the table from both a competitive and cost perspective,” Schmall said of the potential for an additional European plant.
Volkswagen launched PowerCo in 2022, in hopes to create a streamlined, in-house supply chain for electric vehicle (EV) batteries. The automaker also hopes the battery startup will help it compete with Tesla in the emerging EV market.
In October, PowerCo also entered into a joint venture (JV) with Umicore called Ionway, which will produce cathode active materials (CAM) and pCAM in Brussels, Belgium. The venture expects to be able to produce 160 GWh per year of CAM and pCAM materials by 2030, which it says would be enough to support the production of 2.2 million battery-electric vehicles (BEVs).
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“Tesla Takedown” movement plans 500 protests in 277 stores, Superchargers
Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) stated that March 29 is her birthday, and “all I want to see happen on my birthday is for Elon to be taken down.”
The “Tesla Takedown” group is aiming to hold its “biggest day of action” in over 277 Tesla stores, as well as Supercharger stations.
During a mass call on Wednesday, organizers, filmmakers, members of Congress, and other key individuals banded together to call for a mass demonstration against the electric vehicle maker this coming March 29, as noted in a report from The Verge.
Tesla Takedown
The Tesla Takedown movement emerged from critics’ opposition to Elon Musk’s increasingly political nature, his close relationship with U.S. President Donald Trump, and his work with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which is aimed at cutting unnecessary government spending and waste. Members of the Tesla Takedown movement have targeted the EV maker since a notable portion of Musk’s net worth is tied to his Tesla holdings.
Unfortunately, protests against the electric vehicle maker and Musk have become increasingly violent, with Tesla stores being shot up and vehicles being burned in acts of arson. Supercharger stations have also been targeted in arson attacks. Tesla owners’ vehicles have been vandalized and set on fire as well.
Amidst these attacks, Trump has noted that he considers such actions as domestic terrorism. Attorney General Pam Bondi has also noted that those behind the arson and vandalism against Teslas will be caught and persecuted.
“No Conspiracy,” but Still Wishing For Musk Takedown
During the hour-long call, actor and filmmaker Alex Winter, who promoted the Tesla Takedown movement on BlueSky, stated that there is no conspiracy to take down the electric vehicle maker. “There is no conspiracy, there is no well-funded cabal. It’s just Elon Musk who has taken Tesla down,” he said.
Alice Hu, executive director of Planet Over Profit, noted that protesters are looking to hold over 500 events across the world on March 29, with 277 Tesla stores expected to see demonstrations. She also stated that protesters should feel free to demonstrate at Supercharger stations.
“We need to show Elon that he can throw a tantrum online because his stocks are tanking. He can get Trump to put on a humiliating used car show in front of the White House. These wannabe authoritarians can try to intimidate us from exercising our First Amendment rights, but they can’t stop us from fighting back,” Hu said.
Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) called for participants to fight, though she was quick to state that protests should be nonviolent. “The things that we’re fighting for, we are fighting for our country. We’re fighting for democracy. We’re fighting for our freedoms. And when I say fighting, I’m saying that figuratively. Obviously, everything that I am promoting is nonviolent,” she said. Interestingly enough, Crockett also stated that March 29 is her birthday, and “all I want to see happen on my birthday is for Elon to be taken down.”
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has announced two measures the company is taking to fight the vandalism that is going on at showrooms across the country as vehicles and even structures have been lit on fire, spray painted, or damaged by various means by those who oppose him or the automaker.
As attacks against Tesla owners and even the company directly continue to occur across the country, people have been wondering what the company will do to fight back. After President Trump and other members of the administration stated that attacks against the company would be treated as domestic terrorism, many thought things would cool down.
However, things have only intensified. Although several of the perpetrators have been arrested and are facing consequences, it seems the severity of the attacks has only gotten worse. Things like Molotov cocktails have been employed by protestors to show their distaste for the company.
Now, Musk is detailing several things Tesla is doing at its showrooms in hopes of ending everything that has gone on and persisted due to the resistance from those who oppose the automaker.
Musk says that Tesla is now ramping up security at its showrooms and is now using Sentry Mode on all vehicles to help catch perpetrators in the act.
We have seen security beef up in several high-profile locations, including Tesla’s Las Vegas location on Sahara Blvd., where Las Vegas Metro Police were spotted yesterday keeping things under control:
🚨 Tesla showrooms in Las Vegas have security in the form of the LVMPD
It is literal insanity that we have cops guarding Tesla dealers because people can’t have a different opinion in peace https://t.co/aunbNmWRuK
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) March 19, 2025
Additionally, Sentry Mode has already done a great job of catching several perpetrators in the act, like this one who was recently caught, arrested, and now faces up to 18 months in jail for keying a swastika in a Tesla:
Not smart to attack Teslas
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 20, 2025
Hopefully, these two measures can eliminate most of the issues Tesla has had at its showrooms. If not, there will likely be follow-up measures utilized by Tesla in hopes of ending this senseless vandalism.
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Tesla Giga Berlin ramping to optimum production capacity: plant manager
The plant manaher noted that the company has no plans to downsize Gigafactory Berlin’s staff.
Tesla Gigafactory Berlin is roaring back to life, shrugging off a brutal 76% sales dip in February and the ongoing controversies surrounding CEO Elon Musk’s politics.
As per factory manager André Thierig, Giga Berlin is currently aiming to return to its optimal production output, which was throttled when the plant shifted to the new Model Y. Thierig’s comments were related to German publication Der Tagesspiegel.
Return to Production
The Giga Berlin plant manager noted that the facility is ready to ramp its production of the new Tesla Model Y. Last year, the factory produced about 1,000 vehicles per day. Efforts are now underway to return Model Y production to these levels.
Interestingly enough, the plant manager also noted that Giga Berlin only has 3,200 vehicles– about three days’ worth of last year’s production–in its warehouse. This suggests that current demand for the revamped all-electric crossover is quite healthy.
No Slowdowns
While Tesla has seen its sales dip in Germany in the past couple of months, Thierig noted that the company has no plans to downsize Gigafactory Berlin’s staff. He also highlighted that Gigafactory Berlin does not just provide vehicles to Germany—it also supplies the Model Y to dozens of territories, as noted in a CarUp report.
“There are no plans for production stops, staff reductions or downsizing. We have switched production from our previous model to the new Model Y, it takes time. We do not manufacture vehicles in bulk… We not only manufacture vehicles for the German market, but also for 37 other markets, both within and outside the EU,” the plant manager noted.
No Politics
Tesla is a lightning rod in Germany today, and so is CEO Elon Musk, but it is undeniable that Giga Berlin’s 11,000 jobs make it one of Brandenburg’s biggest economic contributors. Thierig, for his part, has highlighted that Giga Berlin is focused on producing cars, not entering political discourse. “We build cars and have never made any political statements,” the plant manager stated.
“Tesla Takedown” movement plans 500 protests in 277 stores, Superchargers
Elon Musk confirms two measures Tesla is taking to fight vandalism
Tesla Giga Berlin ramping to optimum production capacity: plant manager
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