© Reuters. Volvo to end diesel production ‘a few months from now’ as carmaker transitions to EVs
Swedish car maker, Volvo (OTC:), announced Tuesday its intention to end production of any remaining diesel models by early 2024 as part of its transition towards becoming a fully electric car manufacturer.
“In a few months from now, the last diesel-powered Volvo car will have been built, making Volvo Cars one of the first legacy car makers to take this step,” the Swedish company said in a statement.
Volvo has committed to going fully electric by 2030.
As recently as 2019, the majority of cars sold by Volvo in Europe were diesel, but by 2022, they constituted only 8.9% of the Swedish automaker’s sales.
In August, 33% of Volvo’s sales consisted of fully electric or hybrid models. The company did not provide a breakdown for the remaining 67% of combustion-engine models, specifying neither the number running on diesel nor those powered by conventional gas.
The sales of diesel models in Europe have experienced a sharp decline since the emission-cheating scandal involving Germany’s Volkswagen (ETR:). Car manufacturers have been steadily reducing the availability of diesel models in their product lineups.
In 2015, diesel vehicles made up over 50% of new car sales in Europe, but by July, their market share had decreased to just slightly over 14%.
