In 2023, the BMW Group wants electric vehicles to account for 15% of all sales, with the percentage estimated to increase to 20% a year later. For 2025, the automotive conglomerate expects EVs to account for 25% of total deliveries. In 2026, one in three cars sold (33%) will not have a combustion engine. In the long run, BMW projects purely electric cars will represent more than 50% of sales by the end of the decade.
Speaking during the annual press conference, company chairman Oliver Zipse revealed BMW could completely abandon ICE vehicles before 2030 in “individual markets or regions” if necessary. In other words, should new legislation ban sales of gasoline and diesel vehicles before the end of the decade, the German luxury brand will be ready to offer an EV-only lineup.
A similar statement was made by archrival Mercedes back in July 2021 when the three-pointed star promised it would be ready to go completely electric “where market conditions allow” by 2030.
Getting back to BMW, it has several EVs in the pipeline. In a few months, it will introduce an i5 Sedan based on the eighth-generation 5 Series. Before the end of the year, we’ll also see the new X2 together with a zero-emission iX2 counterpart. MINI plans to introduce the next-gen electric hatchback and a Countryman EV. In 2024, the BMW i5 Touring and MINI Aceman will join the portfolio.
MINI and Rolls-Royce will retire conventionally powered vehicles by 2030. BMW has yet to announce a cutoff date for ICE sales. It will be forced to do so in Europe in 2035 should the proposal to completely eliminate CO2 emissions from new cars will be voted favorably. However, many countries (including Germany) are against the potential ICE ban.
Carbon-neutral synthetic fuel is seen by some as the savior of internal combustion engines but it seems unlikely the available production capacity will be enough to fully meet demand in only 12 years from now. Of course, there’s more to the world than the European Union, but any new legislation impacting BMW, Mercedes, Audi, and other automakers based in Europe would have global repercussions.
Source: BMW
