Volvo says all new models to have electric motors starting in 2019
Volvo said Wednesday that starting in 2019 every car it makes will be equipped with an electric motor, signaling an auto industry shift toward electrified cars and China’s intention to become a major global player in that market.
Volvo, a Swedish-based company owned by Chinese automaker Geely, said all its new cars with be fully electric or electric hybrids, with five pure electric models on the market by 2021.
The company becomes the first traditional automaker to commit to total electrification.
“This announcement marks the end of the solely combustion-enginepowered car,” Volvo CEO Hakan Samuelsson said during a conference call with reporters. “People increasingly demand electrified cars, and we want to respond to our customers’ current and future needs.”
Although pure electric cars have yet to excite consumers enough to buy them in large numbers — market penetration in the U.S. remains below 1 percent — governments in China, Europe and, to some extent, the U.S. are offering incentives and issuing mandates to boost sales. India and some European countries are seriously considering banning internal combustion engines.
The Volvo news does not signal the end of the internal combustion engine. The company’s definition of electrified includes mild hybrid cars — vehicles with small electric motors that allow traditional gasoline and diesel engines to turn off at stoplights and get the vehicles moving again before the main engines restart. But with the news, the move to automobile electrification seems to be gaining traction.
Volvo said it aims to reach its target of selling 1 million electrified cars by 2025. The first of the pure electrics will be manufactured in China, but eventually they will be built in factories in Europe and the U.S. as well, Samuelsson said.
Henrik Green, vice president of research and development, said the pure electrics will be offered with both mid- and longrange battery options, lasting up to about 300 miles, but that the company is looking for battery suppliers with better offerings.
Last year, the company had record sales of 534,332 cars in 100 countries, up more than 6 percent from 2015. But Volvo claims less than 0.5 percent in U.S. market share.