Volvo Cars is to end production of any remaining diesel models by early next year as diesel sales continue their rapid decline in Europe and manufacturers race to become fully-electric producers. It was thought Volvo's transition to fully electric would be in 2030.
However, in a statement reported by Reuters this morning, the company said: "In a few months from now, the last diesel-powered Volvo car will have been built, making Volvo Cars one of the first legacy car makers to take this step".
Volvo is owned by the Geely Corporation, one of the Chinese companies striving to achieve increasing global market share for electric vehicles.
In 2020 Chinese car companies achieved a tiny 1.1 per cent of the European market but there has been rapid increase each year since then. In 2021 the share increased to 2.0 per cent, in 2022 it rose to 4.1 per cent and this year so far the share stands at 5.6 per cent - these figures creating headaches for European manufacturers struggling financially and logistically with the transition to EV’s.
The Chinese manufacturers, on the other hand, moved straight into electric vehicle production without the need to invest in the transition from diesel and petrol with platforms and production lines developed specifically for EV’s only - a huge advantage.
Last year sales of diesel cars accounted for just 8.9 per cent of Volvo’s output
Reuters reports that diesel sales in Europe have dropped from 50 per cent of all new cars sales in Europe in 2015, but that figure has dropped to just14 per cent of sales in July.
