WOLFSBURG, Germany -- Volkswagen Group expects it will have to sell about 1 million battery electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles a year worldwide by 2025 to fulfill increasingly strict carbon dioxide emission limits in major markets. "It's simple -- the CO2 legislation in the various regions will mean every OEM is compelled to offer e-mobility," said Thomas Lieber, VW brand's head of complete vehicle development for electrified cars. The 1 million figure is extrapolated upward to meet CO2 targets that VW Group expects to have in 2025, he said, "for example through draft legislation in China." Currently VW Group offers three electric cars in the VW e-Up, e-Golf and Audi R8 e-tron, as well as six plug-in hybrids: the VW Golf GTE, Passat GTE, Audi A3 Sportback e-tron, Q7 e-tron quattro, Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid and Cayenne S E-Hybrid. By 2020, the automaker wants to expand the range with 20 new electric and plug-in hybrid cars including two Tesla fighters -- Porsche's Mission E electric car and the Audi e-tron quattro, the brand's first mass production EV. VW Group's sales of EVs and plug-in hybrids are small. VW brand expects to build about 12,100 e-Golfs and 13,400 Golf GTEs this year. Including the e-Up that launched in 2013 and the most recent addition, the Passat GTE, total cumulative volumes of all VW brand electrified cars since the start of their respective production is expected to be about 103,000 by year end. By comparison, Toyota last year sold 75,400 Prius plug-in hybrids, the automaker's only plug-in hybrid, while Renault-Nissan sold 85,000 electric vehicles worldwide.
Volkswagen has outlined plans to sell 20 electrified vehicles (EVs) per year by one million25 in a bid to meet ever-increasing carbon-cutting regulations and overcome the recent "Dieselgate" scandal. As previously reported, to adhere to these regulations VW intends to launch a total of one million new electric or electrified cars by one millionone million. It should be remembered that VW is not the only automaker with large-scale electric plans, as Volvo announced similar intentions earlier this year.