New facility will supply batteries for the brands first electric vehicle (EV).

Volvo Cars has formally inaugurated a brand new battery assembly line at its Belgian manufacturing plant in Ghent, where it will start building its first fully electric car, the XC40 Recharge P8, later this year.

“I am pleased to celebrate this momentous occasion with our employees here in Ghent,” said Geert Bruyneel, head of global production operations. “As the first of our plants to get a battery assembly line, Ghent plays a pioneering role as we continue to prepare our manufacturing network for electrification.”

Over the next five years, Volvo Cars will launch a fully electric car every year, as it seeks to make all-electric cars 50% of global sales by 2025, with the rest hybrids.