Volvo has committed to become a pure electric car company by 2030, accelerating its shift to EVs.
Any car in its range with an internal combustion will be phased out by 2030 – including hybrids and plug-in hybrids.
The firm says it’s part of a “firm conviction that the market for combustion engine cars is a shrinking one”.
Chief executive Hakan Samuelsson said that “instead of investing in a shrinking business, we choose to invest in the future – electric and online.
‘We are fully focused on becoming a leader in the fast-growing premium electric market.”
As soon as 2025, Volvo is aiming for 50 percent of its sales to be pure electric cars. The rest will be hybrids, which will be phased out within five years.
“There is no long-term future for cars with an internal combustion engine,” said the firm’s chief technology officer Henrik Green.
Last month, Ford also committed to become a pure electric brand by 2030, while Jaguar said it will be pure EV by 2025.
Electric only online
Volvo has also committed to only selling its pure electric cars online, in a move to boost transparency and convenience.
Prices will be fixed and haggle-free, while complexity will be “radically reduced”.
This will not replace traditional Volvo retailers, insists the firm. Instead, customer relationships with retail partners will actually be strengthened, said head of global commercial operations Lex Kerssemakers.
“They remains a crucial part of the customer experience and will continue to be responsible for a variety of important services such as selling, preparing, delivering and servicing cars.
“Online and offline need to be fully and seamlessly integrated.”
The new sales initiative will go under the banner ‘Care by Volvo’, which currently offers subscriptions to Volvo models.
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