BMW completes $1.7bn South Carolina expansion

BMW Group has finalised a $1.7bn investment in the US, completing the expansion of plant Spartanburg and the construction of plant Woodruff in South Carolina.

The German group also confirmed that its electric BMW iX5 will become the first fully electric BMW built in the US, with production scheduled to start at plant Spartanburg before the end of 2026.

BMW Group intends to build at least six fully electric models in the US by 2030, with high-voltage batteries produced locally at plant Woodruff to support that output.

Plant Spartanburg has functioned as BMW’s global hub for X model expertise for more than 30 years.

The plant has assembled the X5 for over 25 years, and the redesigned version will become the first vehicle to come with five separate drivetrain options: petrol, battery electric, plug-in hybrid, diesel, and eventually hydrogen fuel cell power.

This will make Spartanburg the first site in BMW’s production network capable of building one model across five drivetrain types on a single line.

South Carolina has produced more than 7.3 million BMW vehicles since 1994 for markets in the US and abroad.

The plant built 412,799 X models in 2025, marking the seventh-year when output topped 400,000 vehicles.

About half of current production is shipped to nearly 120 countries, with total exports from the US site reaching close to three million vehicles worth over $113bn to date.

BMW’s US footprint covers close to 30 sites across 12 states, supporting more than 120,000 jobs and contributing over $43.3bn a year to the US economy, the company said.

Global X5 sales have surpassed three million since 1999, with a third of those sold in the US.

Plant Spartanburg has also brought in humanoid robots from Figure AI under BMW’s Physical AI Initiative, assisting employees with physically demanding and repetitive work.

At plant Woodruff, battery production uses a “Cell-to-Pack” method, where cells go directly into the housing rather than passing through separate coating or module stages.

“BMW completes $1.7bn South Carolina expansion” was originally created and published by Just Auto, a GlobalData owned brand.