German automakers to invest €58 billion in electric & autonomous cars

German manufacturers will make a massive investment over the next three years in electric cars and automated driving, as well as trebling the number of electric models, the head of the country’s car industry association has said.

“We will invest over €40 billion ($45.5 billion) in electric mobility during the next three years, and another €18 billion ($20.5 billion) will be invested in digitization and connected and automated driving,” VDA President Bernhard Mattes said, as cited by Reuters on Saturday, several days before the Geneva Motor Show.

Germany, along with some other major EU economies, is set to have a much higher share of electric vehicles among its new registrations than the average rate across the bloc, he added.

Europe needs to boost electric mobility because without it, goals for the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions in the EU cannot be achieved by 2030, according to Mattes. For this purpose, the appropriate regulatory conditions must be met. Massive expansion of the charging infrastructure is also required, along with more offerings for e-vehicle buyers.

At the same time, Berlin expects a significant decline in domestic car production this year due to a slowing economy, trade risks linked to US tariffs, as well as the expansion of plants in the US, Mexico and China, the VDA chief warned. German plants are expected to produce 4.8 million passenger vehicles this year, which is around five percent fewer than in 2018.

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