FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Volkswagen plans to have six battery cell production plants operating in Europe by 2030 to secure supply for the world’s No.2 carmaker’s electric vehicle ambitions.

The plants, to be built in partnerships, will have a production capacity of 240 gigawatt hours a year, VW said.

“E-mobility has become core business for us. We are now systematically integrating additional stages in the value chain,” Chief Executive Herbert Diess told VW’s Power Day.

“We secure a long-term pole position in the race for the best battery and best customer experience in the age of zero emission mobility,” Diess added on Monday.

The group also said it would enter partnerships with oil major BP and top European utilities Enel and Iberdrola to expand electric vehicle charging infrastructure, still seen as a major hurdle to the mass adoption of battery-powered cars.

(Reporting by Christoph Steitz; Editing by Kirsti Knolle, Louise Heavens and Alexander Smith)