Volvo wants half of its sales to come from electric vehicles by next year and its ultimate goal is to become an EV-only automaker by 2030. It’s an ambitious plan, which seems hard to achieve seeing how some analysts and even rival automakers are predicting hard days for the growth of electric cars.
But the Swedish-based marque’s head honcho, Jim Rowan, doesn’t see it like that. Speaking during the Reuters Global Markets Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Rowan said he remains confident of “tremendous growth” in the EV market.
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Volvo seems unfazed by the hiccups experienced by other EV makers
Volvo Cars CEO Jim Rowan is confident that the electric vehicle market will see “tremendous growth,” Reuters reported. The automaker’s remark comes as some analysts and even rival EV manufacturers are bracing for tough times caused by rising interest rates and a swelling inventory.
“We have much more pricing power and people have got more disposable income so they can afford it if they want to drive an EV,” Rowan said, adding that he saw good growth globally for electric cars, particularly in Europe.
And looking at the numbers, we tend to agree with him. Last year, EV sales in the United States reached almost 1.2 million units–376,000 more than in 2022. Volvo also saw a sharp increase in global sales, with 113,419 EVs sold in 2023, up 70% compared to 2022, despite a weak fourth quarter. That’s 16% of the company’s total output. If we take plug-in hybrids into account, the number rises to 37.5%.
BMW and Hyundai Motor Group seem to be on the same page as Volvo. The German automaker had record plug-in car sales last year and is predicting that, in the long-term, growth will come from EVs while ICE models will likely take the back seat. At the same time, the Korean car group is poised to see its sales numbers reach new records this year after a great 2023. Not to mention Tesla, which managed to take the two top spots in the best-selling EVs list last year with the Model Y and Model 3. Again.
Volkswagen, General Motors, and others, on the other hand, have had their fair share of disappointments last year. VW brand CEO Thomas Schafer said that the marque is no longer competitive, and GM CEO Mary Barra mentioned during an interview that the EV growth rate has decreased.
As always, not everybody will see success, but even those who are facing difficulties seem to be doing their best to sort out their issues and come out on top. VW has a massive cost-saving program planned and GM more or less promised that it will get its act together and finally ramp up production of its Ultium battery cells that caused most of its output woes.
