General Motors announced that it will sell only electric vehicles and go completely carbon neutral by 2035, NBC News reports.
GM Chairwoman and CEO Mary Barra, who has touted the company’s plan for an “all-electric future,” said Thursday that the company will phase out gas and diesel-powered combustion engines within 15 years.
“General Motors is joining governments and companies around the globe working to establish a safer, greener and better world,” Barra said in a statement. “We encourage others to follow suit and make a significant impact on our industry and on the economy as a whole.”
Other companies, like Nissan, have also vowed to switch entirely to electric vehicles by the 2030s.
GM launched its first class of electric vehicles in 2016 and has expanded their offerings since.
“We feel this will be the successful business model of the future,” GM's environmental chief Dane Parker told reporters. “We feel we will be able to overcome obstacles (and) be able to thrive in the future.”
GM aiming to reduce costs:
The company plans to reduce the costs of its electric vehicle batteries, aiming to drop them from $145 per kilowatt-hour to $100 and ultimately to $70.
The company estimates that will save over $4,000 per vehicle.
GM also plans to only use renewable energy sources to power its US factories by 2035 and its overseas factories by 2040.
Biden makes electric vehicle push:
GM said it is “excited about the things the new Biden administration is doing,” citing President Joe Biden’s push to expand electric vehicle use.
Biden signed an executive order that will replace the government’s fleet of 650,000 vehicles with all-electric models.
He did not specify a timeline but acknowledged it would take time to replace the “enormous fleet.”
