BMW Announces Electrification of South African Plant; to Build Next gen X3 Model

BMW Group has announced an investment of 4.2 bn rand (over 200 million euros) in the electrification of Plant Rosslyn in South Africa. From 2024 the next-generation BMW X3 will be made in South Africa as a plug-in hybrid for global export.

The investment will be accompanied by specialist training for more than 300 employees at the plant.

Fifty years ago, Plant Rosslyn was the BMW Group’s first foreign facility.

It has since become a mainstay of the global production network. 

Plant Rosslyn has produced more than 1.6 million vehicles to date and exported them to more than 40 countries worldwide, including 14 nations in Africa. Its production portfolio has included the BMW 1800 SA and BMW 2000 SA as well as the BMW 5 Series and 7 Series.

For decades it was a cornerstone of BMW 3 Series production, and it has been manufacturing the BMW X3 since 2018 – the best-selling BMW. 

South Africa is also home to some 2,000 employees providing global IT services for the BMW Group. 

Milan Nedeljković, BMW AG Board Member for Production, says: “In South Africa we have not just set up a plant that offers employment and contributes to the country’s industrialisation; for the last 50 years, we have also demonstrated the meaning of social responsibility.”

The BMW Group sells vehicles in more than 140 countries around the world and operates manufacturing facilities in 15.