One third. No more no less. This is the investment that Volkswagen will maintain with respect to its capital
The path towards electrification is unstoppable and irreversible, but combustion is not dead. I’m not saying it, Arno Antlitz, Volkswagen’s director of operations, says it.
The company plans to launch an electric car for less than 20,000 euros, be an alternative to Tesla and lead the manufacture of electric batteries. All this is not incompatible with another great plan: continue developing combustion engines.
Volkswagen and electrification, a half-plan. Volkswagen, for the moment, is not working out with the electric car. Although the sales of the ID.3 and ID.4 are being a boost for the German manufacturer’s accounts, they do not expect to compete in volume with giants like Telsa.
This does not stop the plans to continue investing in the electric car, in fact, two thirds of its capital allocation will be allocated to it. The key here is that a third will go to the development of combustion engines.
“It is a third and it will remain a third”. This is the figure that Antlitz announces to remain competitive in combustion engines. The Volkswagen manager wanted to make it clear that “the future is electric, but the past is not over.”
In other words, Volkswagen will keep the development of its combustion engines alive, at least during this transition period. This does not have to translate into new engines or technologies, but it does guarantee that we will have gasoline versions of Volkswagen vehicles for several years, since the production of current engines will be maintained.
A plan with an expiration date. Despite Volkswagen’s intentions, these objectives are limited to the medium term. 2035 is the fateful year for the combustion car, the year in which Europe will prohibit the continued sale of cars that are not electrified.
Despite this, there is still a horizon of more than ten years in which the German manufacturer has room to continue giving wings to combustion: the adoption of the electric car continues to advance, but its penetration remains ridiculous in percentage terms.
A great investment to solve your problem: production. Volkswagen does not fully control the production of electric motors. This is pushing it to force gears and prioritize the most profitable ones, such as the AP550 fitted to the new Volkswagen ID.7.
While continuing to invest in electric vehicles and improving their production, continuing to gain ground in combustion can provide an important boost for the company’s sales. Volkswagen assures that the demand for electric cars is not yet enough, so keeping gasoline alive is a plan that makes sense.
Image | Volkswagen
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