In December we were already able to report that Volvo only wants to supply electric cars from 2030. This cautious objective is now officially underlined. They don’t waste any time: a new electric model will be unveiled later today!
In December the news came from Volvo itself, although the brand did not make any official promises at the time. At the time, it was ‘just’ a comment from CEO Hakan Samuelsson, who said he was ‘surprised’ if Volvo does not become fully electric within the next ten years.
2030 is now officially confirmed as the year in which the range should be fully electric in appearance. Volvo leaves no doubt about it: “By then we only want to sell fully electric cars and every car with an internal combustion engine must be phased out permanently, including the hybrids.”
Ambitions and regulations
Naturally, Volvo cites its own environmental ambitions as an important motivation. However, the brand also assumes that both regulations and the enormous growth of the (fast) charging network will ensure that consumers get used to electric cars very quickly. “To remain successful, we need profitable growth. Instead of investing in a shrinking market, we choose to invest in the future,” said Samuelsson.
Only for sale online
According to Volvo, that future is not only fully electric, but also very ‘online’. Future EVs – and therefore all future Volvos – can in time only be purchased online. Under the banner of Care by Volvo, the brand also wants to simplify its pricing policy, so that a ‘more complete, more attractive and more transparent’ offer is created. Freely translated: the number of versions and options will be reduced and there will be a clear field of carefully composed versions. Tesla introduced that concept, which has since been followed by almost every EV builder.
The electric platform of the Volvo XC40
Volvo’s plans are not unique, but they are special for a brand that currently only sells one electric model under its own name with the Volvo XC40 Recharge P8. Of course there is also Polestar, whose advantage as a builder of purely (ahem) electric cars will decline rapidly in the coming years. Volvo can, however, continue to push Polestar forward as its hip, progressive brother, such as the Polestar 2 can already exist alongside the XC40 P8.
New EV later today
However, Volvo’s electric range needs to be expanded quickly and work is underway. Later today, a second Volvo electric car will be unveiled, also a model ‘in the 40 series’. A relatively compact model, just like the XC40.
After this afternoon’s model, more will follow soon, because Volvo has to continue to achieve the plans. By 2025, roughly halfway to 2030, half of the Volvo cars sold worldwide must be equipped with an electric powertrain. In Europe, and certainly in the Netherlands, that share should probably already be considerably higher, because this part of the world has a real pioneering role in this area worldwide.