“Volkswagen” plans to invest tens of billions of euros in electric...

Berlin – dpa: The German “Volkswagen” group, the largest car producer in Europe, intends to pump more investments in electric cars and digital technology for cars, despite the effects of the new Corona virus pandemic on the automobile industry and investor concerns about the continuing repercussions of the scandal of manipulating the results of exhaust rate tests. In diesel cars, known in the media as the “Dieselgate” scandal.
“The restructuring of the company will not slow down as a result of the Corona virus, but rather it will accelerate,” Herbert Deiss, Group CEO, said during the company’s virtual general assembly. Volkswagen plans to invest 14 billion euros (16.4 billion dollars) in developing digital operation and self-driving cars by 2024.
In addition, Volkswagen intends to invest 33 billion euros in the electric car sector by 2024, as it aims to be the largest producer of electric cars in the world.
The German company’s plans stress the importance of the Chinese market, which is the largest market for cars in the world, in the development of the electric car industry.
“Electric cars will drive growth in the Chinese auto market over the current decade,” Deiss said. Volkswagen had announced earlier its intention to invest 15 billion euros or more in China during the period from 2020 to 2024, as part of its expansion in the field of electric cars.
At the same time, Deiss stressed the importance of digital transformation for the automotive sector and its group.
Deiss told the Virtual General Assembly in Berlin that the shift in engine technology is the easiest path for traditional car manufacturers to take, adding that “it will go much further when the car evolves in the coming years to turn into a mobility device connected to the electronic network in a form. Whole”.
Deiss said his group should not only be able to provide transportation, but also the mind that safely steers the car using artificial intelligence. He added that in order to achieve this goal, Volkswagen must be transformed into a digital company.
He expressed his belief that the start of the new car, “ID3”, represents a source of hope, in reference to the future of “Volkswagen” and the achievement of climate goals in the Paris Agreement, and pointed out that the company currently has more than 30 thousand applications for the full electric car. The company’s supply of electric cars has grown with the addition of the compact sports car “ID4”, which the group unveiled on the Internet last week, to be added to the family of ID cars.
It is expected that half a million cars of this model will be sold by 2025.
Deiss said he believes Volkswagen is better prepared than its competitors for the expected tightening of carbon dioxide emissions targets. “In order to support the European Commission Green Agreement, efforts to restructure the value-added chain must once again be strengthened,” he added.