BMW Manufacturing Co. announced today that the export value of its passenger vehicles through the Port of Charleston in 2015 totaled $9.8 billion, confirming the company’s South Carolina facility as the leading U.S. automotive exporter by value.
Greer also hosts the largest facility in BMW’s global production network.
According to data from the U.S. Department of Commerce, this accomplishment represents a 7.8 percent increase over BMW’s 2014 value. In 2015, more than 280,000 vehicles were exported from its South Carolina plant, over 70 percent of the plant’s total volume.
And that figure is easily expected to rise with the Greer plant completing a $1 billion expansion that includes the launch of the X7 and mass production of at least 450,000 X-models annually.
BMW Manufacturing produces more than 1,400 vehicles each day and is the exclusive exporter of X-model vehicles (X3, X4, X5 and X6) to more than 140 global markets. In 2015, the plant produced a record 400,904 vehicles.
In 2015, the BMW brand finished the year with record sales of 346,023 vehicles in the U.S. Nearly 30 percent of this amount represents a South Carolina X-Model.
“Once again, BMW is proud to claim the top vehicle exporter spot,” said Manfred Erlacher, President and CEO of BMW Manufacturing. “2015 was a great year for BMW in the United States… we had a record production year and a record sales year.”
“SC Ports Authority has a strong partnership with BMW, and their operations are a tremendous asset to our port,” said Jim Newsome, SCPA president and CEO. “We are proud to serve the nation’s leading automotive exporter through both our Charleston and Greer facilities and look forward to supporting their future growth.”
2016 production
X3 Vehicles: 10,262
X4 Vehicles: 3,785
X5 Vehicles: 10,646
X6 Vehicles: 2,880