GM plans new range of electric vehicles
GENERAL Motors plans to launch a new family of electric vehicles in 2021 that will cost less to build and make a profit for the number one US vehicle manufacturer, chief executive Mary Barra has said.
Her plans represent a direct challenge to moneylosing electric vehicle specialist Tesla, which is struggling to get its more affordable, high-volume Model 3 launched and recently reported its largestever quarterly loss. “We are committed to a future electric vehicle portfolio that will be profitable,” Barra said at the Barclays Global Automotive Conference in New York on Wednesday.
Electric and autonomous vehicles – known in the industry as EVs and AVs – are widely seen as the keystones of future transport, but Tesla, Ford and other manufacturers are still working out how to make money on them. GM was looking to break out of that pattern by developing an all-new electric vehicle platform that would accommodate multiple sizes and segments, to be sold by different GM brands in the United States and China, Barra said, adding new details to GM’s aggressive electrification strategy.
Early last month, GM said it planned to launch 20 new electric vehicles by 2023, but did not provide specifics.
In comparison, rival Ford has said it plans to introduce 13 “electrified” vehicles – mostly hybrid petrol-electric models – by 2022.
Barra said GM aimed to be selling a million electric vehicles a year by 2026, many of them in China, which has set strict production quotas on such vehicles.
On Monday, GM’s China chief said the car maker and its joint-venture partners would be able to meet the country’s 2019 electric vehicle requirements without purchasing credits from other companies.
GM’s cost reduction efforts on electric vehicles centre on a new battery system that will be more than 30% cheaper than the one that powers the Chevrolet Bolt.