Electrical Equipment / Components & Telecoms

According to the statements issued by various auto companies, investor introductions and regulatory documents, Reuters has compiled an analysis report on electrification investment data. Reuters analysis shows that global automakers plan to invest more than US$500 billion in electric vehicles and batteries by 2030, aiming to free consumers from dependence on internal-combustion vehicles and achieve increasingly difficult decarbonization goals.

u3000u3000 About three years ago, a similar analysis by Reuters showed that automakers planned to invest US$300 billion in electric vehicles and related technologies. However, as some major countries and cities around the world are about to introduce zero-carbon emission regulations, the electric vehicle industry is facing more urgent pressure to expand investment.

u3000u3000 The latest analysis by Reuters shows that global automakers plan to invest approximately US$515 billion in the next 5 to 10 years to develop and manufacture new electric vehicles and eliminate internal combustion engine vehicles. However, industry executives and forecasters are still worried that without a large number of additional incentives and increased investment in charging infrastructure and grid capacity, consumer demand for electric vehicles may fall far short of the targets set by the automotive industry. .

Brian Maxim, head of global drivetrain forecasting at AutoForecast Solutions, believes that increasing investment commitments in the field of automotive electrification may be related to this-"Once several car manufacturers announce electric vehicle plans, all other manufacturers must announce their own plans, otherwise It will be regarded as backward.” However, “this will make many automakers plan to mass-produce a model of unknown consumer acceptance (electric models), and there may be no profit in the next few years.”

u3000u3000 Other companies have also put forward different electrification investment forecasts. In June of this year, consulting firm AlixPartners predicted that by 2025, the auto industry's investment in electric vehicles may reach 330 billion U.S. dollars. According to data from Arrow Platinum, in 2020, global automakers will invest nearly 225 billion U.S. dollars in capital expenditures and R&D.

u3000u3000 Tesla, the world's largest electric car manufacturer, seems to be the only company that "sells as much as it can produce". Tesla is spending billions of dollars to build super factories near Berlin, Germany and Austin, Texas. These two factories will greatly increase its annual production capacity. At the beginning of November, Tesla's market value reached 1.2 trillion US dollars, almost more than twice the combined market value of Volkswagen, Toyota, Ford and General Motors.

u3000u3000 At the same time, global automakers are facing increasing regulatory pressure. Governments of various countries require them to gradually stop the production of internal combustion engine vehicles (including gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles) in the next 10 to 15 years, while increasing the output of pure electric vehicles. Countries such as Singapore and Sweden have stated that they will ban the sale of new internal-combustion vehicles by 2030. US President Biden has stated that he hopes that by 2030, the sales of electric vehicles in the United States will account for 40% to 50% of total car sales.

u3000u3000 According to Reuters' analysis, Volkswagen Group's electrification investment is still leading the industry. By 2030, Volkswagen has pledged to invest more than US$110 billion in electric vehicles and batteries. Volkswagen’s electrification investment commitments accounted for more than 20% of the total investment commitments for electrification in the automotive industry, laying the foundation for Volkswagen’s plans to launch millions of electric vehicles in Europe, China and North America in the next ten years. According to public data released by Volkswagen, like many competitors, Volkswagen’s investment is aimed at increasing the range and performance of batteries, reducing the cost of electric vehicles, and expanding the production of electric vehicles and batteries worldwide.

u3000u3000 Reuters analysis shows that the Big Three German automakers (Volkswagen, Daimler and BMW) plan to invest US$185 billion by 2030, while US car companies GM and Ford expect to invest nearly US$60 billion by 2025. Chinese auto companies headed by the Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation have announced that their investment target for electric vehicles in the next ten years will far exceed US$100 billion. Japanese car companies lag far behind other car companies. Honda, Toyota and Nissan have so far publicly pledged investment totaling less than 40 billion U.S. dollars.

u3000u3000 These investments do not include the tens of billions of U.S. dollars invested by the world's largest battery company to expand battery production capacity, many of which are investments in cooperation with their car manufacturers.