BMW CEO Oliver Zipse to lead ACEA in 2021
Oliver Zipse, chairman of the Board of Management of BMW Group, will lead the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) starting January 2021.
Zipse was appointed president of the association during a meeting of its Board of Directors, composed of the CEOs of Europe’s car, van, truck and bus manufacturers, in December 2020. As of January 2021, he will take over the ACEA presidency from Michael Manley, CEO of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA).
“2021 will be a pivotal year for the EU auto industry in the transition to sustainable mobility,” said Zipse. “This aspiration comes against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has hit the global economy and our sector hard. However, we are convinced of the need to join forces across industries and with political leaders to achieve the greatest impact in fighting climate change. All parties involved need to contribute to this overarching goal of reducing emissions. An urgent task is the EU-wide rollout of charging infrastructure to ensure everyday usability of electric vehicles for customers in all member states. In addition, we need to utilise the latest innovations across the full range of drivetrain technologies to meet all customers’ demands.”
The ACEA president is elected for a year-long term, which can be renewed once.
Born in Heidelberg, Zipse was appointed chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG in 2019. Since he joined BMW in 1991, he has held various responsibilities within the company in development, technical planning and production. He was managing director of BMW Group Plant Oxford from 2007 to 2008, senior vice president, technical planning until 2012 and senior vice president, global corporate planning and product strategy until 2015. In May 2015, he was appointed to the Board of Management of BMW AG, responsible for worldwide production.
Zipse holds a degree (Dipl Ing) from the Technical University of Darmstadt and an Executive MBA from the WHU Koblenz and Kellogg School of Management.
He is deputy chair of the Senate of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft.
About ACEA
ACEA represents the 16 major Europe-based car, van, truck and bus manufacturers: BMW Group, CNH Industrial, DAF Trucks, Daimler, Ferrari, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Ford of Europe, Honda Motor Europe, Hyundai Motor Europe, Jaguar Land Rover, PSA Group, Renault Group, Toyota Motor Europe, Volkswagen Group, Volvo Cars, and Volvo Group.
