Bosch Takes Over EM-motive, Electric Motor Joint Venture With Daimler

Bosch acquires EM-motive and intends to supply motors to various carmakers

Bosch announced that it will take over the electric motor manufacturer EM-motive – the fifty-fifty joint venture established with Daimler.

EM-motive was originally set up in 2011 to share costs of developments of electric motors and make it economical to enter electric-motor manufacturing, which was especially important in the beginning when volumes were low. Since then, EM-motive produced some 450,000 electric motors for all-electric, plug-in hybrid and hybrid cars from Daimler, Porsche, Fiat, Volvo, Peugeot, and StreetScooter.

The joint venture agreement envisioned that Bosch will be able to take full control of the company by the acquisition of Daimler’s shares and this is what happened. The purchase price or any further details of the acquisition are not disclosed and the deal is subject to approval by the antitrust authorities.

“Right from the establishment of the joint venture, Bosch secured an option to acquire the shares. A complete takeover was thus already an option in the joint venture agreement. The change in ownership structure will not have any immediate effect on the roughly 340 EM-motive associates currently working at the locations in Stuttgart and Hildesheim, Germany.”

“The motor is a key component in the electrical powertrain: The more efficiently it works, the less energy it consumes, which not only means greater range, but also significantly lower operating costs. Even now, the electromobility business is growing rapidly, and by the start of the next decade at the latest, it will have developed into a mass market.”

EM-motive – production of electric motors

Bosch intends to expand the business and supply electric motors for various manufacturers on its own. It’s open question how good are the opportunities as with mass-volume, car manufacturers often launches its own motor production.

We also note that Daimler resigned from EM-motive in its latest electric smart (fortwo and forfour), which received motors from Renault. Other customer – PSA Group (Peugeot, Citroën, DS, Opel/Vauxhall) – already announced plans for motor production in France (with help of Nidec). Porsche probably will try motors from Volkswagen Group we guess.

Dr. Stefan Hartung, member of the board of management of Robert Bosch GmbH and chairman of its Mobility Solutions business sector said:

“For Bosch, the complete acquisition of EM-motive is the next logical step on the path to becoming the market leader for electromobility. It’s a chance to establish an even broader presence in the market,”

Dr. Mathias Pillin, the member of the Powertrain Solutions executive management responsible for the electric-vehicle market segment said:

“The company’s electric motors already feature in vehicles made by Daimler, Porsche, Fiat, Volvo, Peugeot, and StreetScooter, among others. With this move, Bosch above all intends to acquire new customers in the rapidly growing global market,”.

EM-motive – production of electric motors

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