Mercedes in shift to electric vehicles
MERCEDES-BENZ is accelerating its roll-out of battery-powered vehicles in a race to meet tighter emissions rules as European buyers turn away from fuel-efficient diesel cars.
In a €10 billion (R141.2bn) project, the world’s largest luxury-car maker intends to release 10 new electric vehicles by 2022, three years earlier than a target announced at the Paris auto show in September. The expedited time frame reflects the urgency facing manufacturers as they brace for a shift away from traditional automotive technologies. Combustion engines would continue to be refined for a “transitional period”, Mercedes parent, Daimler AG, said yesterday.
“We want to shape the profound transformation of the automotive industry from the forefront,” Daimler chairman Manfred Bischoff said in a statement at the company’s annual shareholder meeting in Berlin. “Further fundamental changes will be required for Daimler to remain successful,” as the industry adjusts to cars running on electric motors and capable of driving themselves. Emissions The faster pace comes as the industry battles with a backlash against diesel cars stemming from Volkswagen AG’s cheating scandal. Daimler has also been embroiled, with German prosecutors investigating the Stuttgart-based car maker’s employees over diesel-manipulation allegations. The technology is key for meeting increasingly stringent rules for lower carbon-dioxide emissions.
Daimler is “naturally” co-operating with the authorities on the diesel probe, chief executive Dieter Zetsche said yesterday, in his first public comments on the matter since the investigation became public on March 22. He repeated that Germany’s motor authority and Transport Ministry had found no violations in their tests of Daimler vehicles.
After achieving steady reductions in CO² emissions in previous years, Daimler struggled in 2016 with levels in Europe steady at 123g/km as buyers favoured larger vehicles. In its home region, Daimler needs to reach 100g/km by 2021 or face fines.