Swedish automaker Volvo Cars said on Wednesday that it is scrapping its goal of going fully electric by 2030 as the electric vehicle market continues to struggle.
The company announced it now aims for between 90 percent and 100 percent of its cars to be fully electric or plug-in hybrids by the end of the decade, with the remainder being “mild,” non-plug-in hybrids, a company press release stated.
Volvo’s backpedaling comes amid lower-than-expected consumer demand for EVs and a recent industry shift away from electrification.
“While Volvo Cars will retain its position as an industry leader in electrification, it has now decided to adjust its electrification ambitions due to changing market conditions and customer demands,” the company wrote.
“The strategic adjustments to its electrification ambitions ensure that Volvo Cars has a flexible plan that meets customer preferences and enables value creation as a business.”
Volvo has ditched plans to sell only electric cars by 2030 amid waning demand for battery powered vehicles.
“We are and will remain an industry leader in electrification and nearly half of our global sales are either fully electric or plug-in hybrids,” a Volvo spokesman told the DCNF.
The company’s shift in strategy comes amid broader challenges in the EV market, with consumer demand coming in lower than proponents hoped, according to Fortune, and automakers like Rivian, Ford and General Motors hemorrhaging cash on their EV initiatives.
Ford scrapped plans to manufacture a three-row electric SUV in August, while Mercedez-Benz dropped its goal of an all-electric line-up by 2030 in February. Luxury EV maker Lucid laid off 6 percent of its workforce in May, equating to roughly 400 employees.
Volvo’s Wednesday announcement is the latest setback for President Joe Biden’s goal of having 50 percent of new U.S. car sales be EVs by 2030.
Another company just figured out EVs aren’t very popular right now. No one country has the infrastructure to handle it right now. Not enough chargers built. Don’t even think those batteries are recyclable. We need our fossil fuels right now
The Auto Odustry in America has become too costly add nauseum with EVs THE industry is untenable and Americans can no longer afford cars or homes like the past,that’s just truth Hell America can’t hardly afford utilities or food for that matter ! Just Being Real Here.
The world is not ready for electric vehicles yet there may come a time maybe around 2050 that they may become feasible but it is not now, the infrastructure is not there and the batteries are definitely not safe and the distance is nowhere near enough.
I think the idea of EVs would have much better accepted if they were presented as a new and innovative car, rather than being forced down our throats.
I’d never consider purchasing an electric vehicle. FOSSIL fuels still predominantly used to create electric so what’s the advantages?