Volkswagen group says it approximately doubled its battery-electric vehicle (BEV) deliveries in 2021 on-year to 452,900 units. These now account for 5.1% of total deliveries, up from 2.5% in the previous year, Kallanish hears from the carmaker.

The group claims to be the European market leader for battery-electric vehicles and achieved the second-largest share of the key US market with about 7.5%. In China, 92,700 BEVs were delivered, more than four times the figure for 2020. Sales of plug-in hybrids worldwide also rose significantly to 309,500 units, or up 61%.

In total, the group delivered 8.882 million vehicles to customers around the world. As forecast, the global semiconductor shortage led to a slight decrease of 4.5% in 2020 despite high customer demand and full order books.

VW projects that in 2030 half of all cars sold worldwide will be purely electric. Systematic electrification of the product portfolio is also reflected in the investment planning for the years 2022 to 2026 that VW presented in December. These plans provide for an increase in capex and development costs for e-mobility of around 50% compared with the previous planning, giving a total of €52 billion ($60 billion).