March 31, 2014—BMW plans to increase the capacity of its South Carolina plant by 50 percent to begin production of the new BMW X4 and X7 models, according to a recent BMW press release.
The company said it plans to invest $1 billion in Plant Spartanburg to increase the capacity to 450,0000 vehicles. The current capacity is roughly 300,000 vehicles.
BMW said the capacity is necessary to meet the demand for BMW X models. In addition to the X3, X5 and X6 models, the plant will begin producing the all-new X4 and X7.
"We are expanding BMW Plant Spartanburg as our center of competence for production of BMW X models and broadening our product portfolio,” said Norbert Reithofer, chairman of the board of management, BMW Group. “This expansion means Spartanburg will have the largest production capacity of any plant in our global production network. This plant already exports, on average, 70 percent of its annual production with a 2013 value of more than $7.5 billion which, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce, makes BMW the largest U.S. vehicle exporter to non-NAFTA countries."