Frankfurt (AFP)
German automaker Daimler will be ready to go all-electric before 2030 and, to achieve this, will invest 40 billion euros over the decade, he said Thursday.
The manufacturer of Mercedes-Benz plans to open eight factories around the world for battery cells, the key component of electric models, a sign of the accelerated abandonment by the automotive sector of traditional fuels against a backdrop of increasingly stringent environmental standards.
"We will be ready if the markets turn entirely to electric by the end of the decade," notes Ola Källenius, boss of Daimler, presenting a "fundamental reallocation of capital" as a historic split in the group.
By the end of the year, Daimler intends to IPO its heavy-vehicle business Daimler Trucks, which has become independent.
For the automobile branch Mercedes-Benz Cars and Vans, Daimler will in total devote at least 40 billion in less than ten years to electrification.
Investments in thermal and hybrid technologies will drop by 80% between 2019 and 2026.
Mercedes now expects a share of hybrid and electric cars in global sales of at least 50% in 2025, down from 25% previously.
"China is to play a key role in the accelerated electrification strategy," said the manufacturer of the luxury S-Class, whose electric model EQS was unveiled in April.
The key to this strategy: from 2025, Mercedes will only launch "architectures" - the technical basis of a vehicle that accommodates engine, wheel and chassis - 100% electric.
It will also acquire the British startup YASA, specializing in electric motors.
Daimler has not specified either the deadline or the location for its eight "giga-factories" of battery cells that the group intends to install around the world to cover its needs.
Despite electrification, Daimler intends to maintain the level of its margins, adds the group.
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