German automaking giant Mercedes is pushing back its EV targets in a move that could allow the company to produce ICE vehicles well into the 2030s.
The company had previously targeted 50pc of its new vehicle sales being electric by 2025, but now expects that milestone by 2030.
The firm became the latest automaker to cite slowing demand and unfavourable economic conditions as reasons for an EV pushback, following US OEMs Ford and GM.
"The company expects xEV sales to reach up to 50pc of overall sales in the second half of the decade. Factories are retooled to follow demand to capture the tipping point into an all-electric era," Mercedes says in its fourth quarter report.
Mercedes combines BEV and PHEV under the term 'xEV'.
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While Mercedes says that it is taking the "necessary steps" to go all electric, the firm concedes that "customers and market conditions will set the pace of the transformation."
From 2024 onwards, Mercedes-Benz will replace its current CO₂ emissions KPI for the new car fleet in Europe with a new guidance KPI – An xEV share for sales of new cars and vans.
And the company will continue to invest in updating its ICE offerings in coming years.
"We are updating all of our relevant ICE powertrain combinations for the 2027 timeframe. So it is almost like we will have a whole new fresh lineup in 2027 that can carry us well into the 2030s," says Mercedes CEO Ola Källenius.
The CEO also expressed doubt that the current European policy environment is adequate to enable automakers to meet the 2035 zero-emissions vehicle mandate.
"For a big system like transport and mobility to turn and literally switch energy source...that is a Herculean task," he says. "Many things need to fall into play for that to happen, not just the product."
Ciaran has written about finance, politics and culture. He is passionate about e-mobility and what it means for our way of life.
Ciaran has a Masters in Ancient Philosophy from Oxford University.
