PSA Group to Launch Hybrid and Electric Vehicles

 

Another global automaker joins the electric vehicle ranks; starting next year, every new model from PSA Group will come in a hybrid or all-electric version, and by 2025 every single model will have an electrified version. In announcing this move, PSA Group cites forecasts which call for the electrified market to expand by 9x in the U.S., 13x in Europe, and 8x in China by 2025.

Showcasing the company’s commitment to electric mobility, PSA Group’s Peugeot recently unveiled the fully electric and autonomous e-Legend concept vehicle that is anticipated to have a range of more than 350 miles (featured in above video).

The company, which earlier this year established a Low Emission Vehicles Business Unit to focus on electrification, has defined the following “innovation triptych” to guide its strategy:

• Innovating to meet customer expectations to meet the needs of the greatest number of people and develop original vehicle features.
• Innovating to limit environmental impact by reducing the CO₂ and pollutant emissions of vehicles, and by limiting the environmental impact of the materials used to build them.
• Innovating to offer more attractive products, in terms of quality, longevity, value-added services such as connectivity and autonomy, and the driving experience.

Plug-in hybrids, which carry battery packs for all-electric driving accompanied by a backup internal combustion engine for longer journeys, are a big part of PSA Group’s strategy. According to Olivier Salvat, who leads the company’s plug-in hybrid electric vehicle group, “Fifty percent of journeys in Europe cover less than [10 miles]. Plug-in hybrid is an optimal solution for everyday electric driving for short journeys, with the internal combustion engine providing power for longer drives.” From a macro perspective, the company estimates that tailpipe pollutants can be cut in half with a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle charging only once a day as compared to a traditional internal combustion engine.

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