Volkswagen bets big on electric vehicles – and on China

Volkswagen aims to produce 22 million electric vehicles over the next decade - and more than half of those will be produced in China, the company announced this week at an auto fair in Shanghai. In a press release, Volkswagen said it expects to produce more than 11 million battery-powered electric vehicles (BEV) in China by 2028 (read full press release in English here). “China will be the automotive powerhouse of the future,” VW Chairman Herbert Diess told Deutsche Welle.
The company also unveiled plans for a fully electric SUV, the ID ROOMZ, to be produced and sold first in China starting in 2021, Reuters reports.  And it announced plans to combine VW’s research and development operations in China with that of its premium brand, Audi. The announcement represents a major bet on China, Deutsche Welle says: “China is to become the Volkswagen Group’s leading market for electric mobility,” Thomas Neufeld reports. “The message from VW CEO Diess is clear: the fate of the Volkswagen group will be decided in China.”