Enniscorthy Guardian

SEAT announce six electric and plug-in hybrid models by beginning of 2021

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SEAT’s newly-announced electric strategy will include six electric and plug-in hybrid models by the beginning of 2021.

The electric versions of the Mii and el-Born will be the brand’s first two fully electric models, while the new generation Leon and the Tarraco will feature a plug-in hybrid version.

Furthermor­e, the CUPRA Leon and the CUPRA Formentor will also have a plug-in hybrid variant. SEAT President Luca de Meo also announced today at the company’s annual media conference that the CUPRA Formentor, the new CUV that was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show, will be built at the Martorell factory.

For the first time in the history of the company, SEAT will develop a new vehicle platform in collaborat­ion with the Volkswagen brand, a smaller version of the Modular Electric Drive Toolkit (MEB) on which multiple vehicles of the size of around four metres in length by different brands, SEAT among them, will be made. The goal of the new platform is to develop affordable electric vehicles, with an entry level price below 20,000 euros. More than 300 highly skilled engineers will be participat­ing in this project in Spain.

CEO Luca de Meo said that SEAT now has a clearer role in the Volkswagen Group, and ‘ thanks to the results obtained, we have earned the new electric vehicle platform.’

‘For the first time, the SEAT Technical Centre will be developing a platform that may be used by more brands around the globe.’

The electric offensive reaches further than new models and also encompasse­s a micromobil­ity strategy which, as announced by the CEO of SEAT during the Mobile World Congress, the company is going to lead for the Volkswagen Group.

The recently unveiled Minimó concept car plays a part in this strategy and the electric SEAT eXS kickscoote­r are two examples of urban micromobil­ity solutions put forward by the company.

In 2018 SEAT obtained the best results in its history. Profit after tax went up to €294 million, 4.6% more than the previous year (281). Operating profit grew by 93.2% to stand at €223 million and turnover amounted to €9.991 billion, 4.6% higher than the 2017 result. All amounts set new historic records. In the past five years, SEAT’s turnover has grown by 33%.

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