Hyundai has big plans about its electrification program, having set a target of selling more than 560,000 EVs annually by the year 2025 as it looks to catch up with some of its rivals, Reuters reports.
During an announcement earlier this week, the South Korean car manufacturer revealed a plan to launch 16 EVs by 2025. If Hyundai is to sell over half a million electric vehicles by 2025, that will represent a 17-fold increase over its current EV sales figures. Rivals are promising similar growth, with Volkswagen expecting to produce 22 million electric vehicles over the next decade while General Motors is aiming to sell 1 million EVs annually by 2025.
Also Read: Hyundai Said To Be Planning Electric Compact SUV, Could Launch In 2021
“That is not an ambitious target. If Hyundai fails to boost volumes fast enough, costs of electric cars will weigh on profitability,” Lee Jae-il, an analyst at Eugene Securities & Investment, said.
Hyundai made the revelation during the release of its Q3 financials results. Its third-quarter net profit rose 59 per cent to 427 billion won (US$365 million), which is below the 684 billion won (US$583 million) estimate of analysts due to 600 billion won (US$511 million) in provisions earmarked to address potential engine defects in the United States and South Korea.
Elsewhere, Hyundai revealed that its total retail sales fell 3 per cent in the third quarter due to drops in Chinese and South Korean sales despite an increase in U.S. sales and strong demand for its SUVs. Nevertheless, it expects profitability to improve in the fourth quarter thanks to the launch of the upcoming Genesis GV80 and increasing production of the Palisade.
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