MINI will launch its first electric vehicle in 2019, based on the three-door hatchback. 

MINI’s first EV will be based on the three-door hatch.

The production car will arrive ten years after the MINI E, a prototype battery-electric version of the hatch used to test BMW Group technology with end-users, and takes MINI’s plug-in offer to two vehicles, alongside the Countryman plug-in hybrid.

Although the drivetrain will be built at BMW’s EV-specialised factories in Bavaria, they will be integrated into the production line at Plant Oxford in the UK, alongside petrol and diesel-powered versions of the hatchback.

BMW Group has already confirmed that all of its brands and models can be equipped with either fully electric or plug-in hybrid drivetrains – a BMW X3 EV is due by the end of the decade.  As with the MINI, production will take place on the same lines as other versions. By 2025, the Group expects 15-25% of its global sales to be plug-ins, though it said that will depend on incentives and demand.

Oliver Zipse, BMW AG Management Board member for Production said: “Our adaptable production system is innovative and able to react rapidly to changing customer demand. If required, we can increase production of electric drivetrain motor components quickly and efficiently, in line with market developments.”

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