Volvo has committed to being a carbon neutral company by 2040, in line with the 2015 Paris global climate agreement, which seeks to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. One of the pillars to meet the ambitious goal is that models with batteries represent half of its sales in 2025 and 100% from 2030.
But saying goodbye to internal combustion cars is neither easy nor cheap. In addition to investing millions of dollars in the development of new battery-powered models, the brand will deploy charging infrastructure in all markets where it has a presence.
Volvo will install 300 chargers in Mexico this year in the main consumer markets for electric vehicles, such as Mexico City, Monterrey and Guadalajara. The stations will be in shopping centers, universities, offices or restaurants. “We are looking for spaces where people can take advantage of the time while their vehicles are charging,” said Cavazos.
The time required for the model in an alternating current charger is six to eight hours (80% of the battery), while in another direct current -or fast charge- it is 40 minutes.
In a second phase, the brand will seek to install more chargers to connect cities and even countries. “Our goal is to connect, for example, Mexico City with New York or Los Angeles,” Cavazos said.
Plug-in hybrid models already generate a fifth of Volvo’s sales in Mexico and Cavazos expects the electric version of the XC40 to account for between 10% and 15% of sales of this model, totaling just over 1,000 units in what goes of the year.
The manager announced that in the first quarter of 2022 Volvo will launch a second electric model, the C40. Unlike the XC40, the hatchback is only sold with an electric powertrain.