Mercedes-Benz Delays EV Goal Amid Shortages In Sales, Ramps Up Combustion Engine Cars

After a slowdown in EV sales growth, Mercedes-Benz will not be going all EV by 2030 while still having a growing EV portfolio.

Mercedes to launch branded fast charging network.

Source : ABP

There is an EV slowdown happening and that has meant that carmakers are now having to adjust their strategy and look at EVs in a different way. Amidst various challenges that are affecting EV sales and slowing down EV adoption, it seems the combustion engined car is not going away anytime soon.

After a slowdown in EV sales growth, Mercedes-Benz will not be going all EV by 2030 while still having a growing EV portfolio. The carmaker will have combustion engined cars and now expects only 50 percent of its global sales to be EVs. Along with EVs, the carmaker will focus on electrified hybrids as well and gasoline cars.

This shift is due to the less than expected EV sales growth happening in key markets like Europe even. In Europe and US, EV sales still hold a minority market share and it is clear that demand is softening due to concerns regarding charging infrastructure, battery price and more. Meanwhile hybrid sales have picked up which means electrified petrol cars represent the shift since charging infrastructure and range remains the crucial bottleneck for EV adoption.

Mercedes-Benz says 'The company plans to be in a position to cater to different customer needs, whether it’s an all-electric drivetrain or an electrified combustion engine, until well into the 2030s.' which means combustion engined cars are not going away anytime soon. That said, it will continue to bring in more EVs including the EQG electric G-Class off-roader and the electric CLA which is coming this year globally. In India, the EV market share is even lower largely due to lack of models and the concerns regarding range and the charging. That said, EVs have grown in demand compared to the year before while several new EVs are coming to India this year including some from Mercedes-Benz as well.