Joining a growing number of carmakers planning to phase out fossil-fuel engines by the end of this decade, Sweden-headquartered Volvo has announced that its entire car line-up will be fully electric by 2030.
“I am totally convinced there will be no customers who really want to stay with a petrol engine,” Volvo Chief Executive Håkan Samuelsson said when asked about future demand for electric vehicles. “We are convinced that an electric car is more attractive for customers.”
Owned by China-based Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, Volvo said it will launch a new family of electric cars in the next few years, all of which will be sold online only. Volvo will unveil its second all-electric model, the C40, soon. The carmaker said 50 percent of its global sales should be fully-electric cars by 2025 and the other half hybrid models.
Mr. Samuelsson said Volvo will include wireless upgrades and fixes for its new electric models which is an approach pioneered by American electric carmaker Tesla.
Global shift to zero-emission models
Carmakers are racing to switch to zero-emission models as they face carbon dioxide emissions targets in Europe and China, plus looming bans in some countries on fossil fuel vehicles.
Last month, US-based Ford Motor said its line-up in Europe will be fully electric by 2030, while India’s Tata Motors unit Jaguar Land Rover said its luxury Jaguar brand will be entirely electric by 2025 and the carmaker will launch electric models of its entire line-up by 2030.
And last November, luxury carmaker Bentley, owned by Germany’s Volkswagen, said its models will be all electric by 2030. Electrification is expensive for carmakers and as electric vehicles have fewer moving parts, employment in the auto industry is expected to shrink.
Volvo said it will invest heavily in online sales channels to “radically reduce” the complexity of its model line-up and provide customers with transparent pricing. The carmaker’s global network of 2,400 traditional bricks-and-mortar dealers will remain open to service vehicles and to help customers make online orders.
