Moscow. May 10. INTERFAX.RU – German carmaker Volkswagen will increase investments in the development of vehicles using alternative fuels, and plans to become a leader in the field of production of electric vehicles by 2025, said in a statement published on the website of the manufacturer.
“Volkswagen has invested about 3 billion euros in the technology of cars running on alternative fuels, over the past five years, and will triple that amount over the next five years”, – said the head of Volkswagen Matthias Mueller during the shareholders meeting in Hanover.
“Electric cars are the future. We want to become number one in the field of e-mobility 2025”, he said. Mueller reported that Volkswagen has taken active measures, hoping to achieve a breakthrough in technology for electric vehicles.
While the automaker continues to work on increasing the efficiency and environmental performance of diesel and gasoline engines, he added. “The traditional engines will remain an integral part of” life in the foreseeable future, said the head of Volkswagen. According to him, the automaker plans to launch more than 10 new models of electric vehicles by the end of 2018 and more than 30 models by the year 2025.
Mueller added that Volkswagen is negotiating the establishment of partnerships for the production of automotive batteries in Europe and China. The head of Volkswagen has promised that the automaker will increase the share of profit allocated for payment of dividends in the future up to 30% from 19.7% in 2016.
