At its annual shareholder meeting, Mercedes-Benz announced that it will speed up the introduction of fully electric vehicles into its model range.
The luxury car maker now plans to launch 10 EVs by 2022, whereas it had previously committed to releasing the same number of electric vehicles by 2025.
To get these vehicles out the door, Daimler, parent company of Mercedes-Benz and Smart, has budgeted 10 billion euros ($14 billion).
In announcing this change, the company stated that its “corporate strategy focuses on emission-free driving” and “all available means will be utilised to reduce CO2 emissions”. During the “transitional period”, the automaker predicts “efficient combustion engines [will continue] to be a significant element of the solution”.
As part of its drive to reduce its cars CO2 footprint, Daimler will also upgrade its plug-in hybrid technology. The facelifted S-Class will be available with an upgraded plug-in hybrid drive that can manage around 50km of pure EV driving, up from today’s 33-or-so kilometres.
According to Automotive News, Mercedes-Benz and Smart cars sold in the EU in 2016 had CO2 output that averaged out to 123g/km.
Unlike previous years, Daimler was unable to drive down its average CO2 output, as buyers favoured bigger and less efficient vehicles. If the company doesn’t reach 100g/km by 2021, the automaker faces stiff fines from the EU.
The company kicked off its green vehicle push at last year’s Paris motor show with the launch of the Generation EQ crossover concept (pictured above), which previews a production car due in 2019.
Expected to be known as the EQC, this SUV will be the first car in Daimler’s EV offensive, as well as the first launched under the EQ sub-brand. Last year, the company filed trademark applications for the EQA, EQC, EQE, EQG, and EQS nameplates, as well as the following terms: EQ Boost, EQ Inside, Generation EQ, and Generation MEQ.
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