BMW targets 33% EV sales by 2026, to launch 6 models within two years

German manufacturer of luxury vehicles and motorcycles BMW on Wednesday said that more than 50% of its new sales will be all-electric vehicles (EVs) well ahead of its 2030 target. It further added that one in four new vehicles delivered to be electric by 2025 and one in three new sales to be all-electric by 2026.

According to BMW, the main growth drivers in 2023 will be BEVs and models from the high-end premium segment like the new BMW 7 Series, the updated BMW X7 and the Rolls-Royce model family. The automaker, in this upper segment, expects growth in the mid-double-digit percentage range for FY23, with BEV models even likely to grow in the high double-digit percentage range.

Oliver Zipse, Chief Executive Officer of BMW, said, “Since the start of the BMW i3, we have put more than half a million all-electric BMW and MINI vehicles on the roads worldwide. In fact, we sold more than 215,000 all-electric vehicles just last year. That’s more than double the number from 2021 – despite the difficult supply situation.”

“Our order books are very high still after high demand last year, which will carry us through the next couple of months," he added. BMW expects an 8-10% margin for its autos segment in 2023.

The company is also among those trying to develop a hydrogen-powered car, which could go into production in the second half of the decade.

The carmaker, despite forecasting higher deliveries and an increased margin for the year, cautioned that it still expects high costs from supply chain troubles and recession fears in its markets outlook. The company also said it plans to keep prices stable, after years of dealing with rising costs by passing them on to customers.

BEVs had accounted for a 15 percent share in the past year as the BMW Group more than doubled its BEV sales to over 215,000 units.

The company also revealed that its MINI and Rolls-Royce brands are on their way to becoming fully electric from the beginning of the 2030s. The first electric vehicles in the new MINI family are due to be launched on the market this year. In 2030, the Rolls-Royce brand will also have an all-electric offering – starting with Rolls-Royce Spectre.

The company’s new vehicle architecture, which is designed for electric drive trains (BEV-only), will feature a new design language ‘NEUE KLASSE.’ This new theme would focus on the newly developed wiring harness, high-performance electric drive trains and batteries with efficiency and sustainability improvements.

The company is also targeting a 50 percent cost reduction in the sixth generation of batteries from the fifth generation. BMW is likely to start production of these new-gen vehicles in the second half of 2025. BMW also announced to offer direct sales to customers in Europe from 2026 onwards, Zipse said.

Zipse also advocated hydrogen fuel cell technology and said that it could be a worthwhile option alongside battery-powered cars. The company also said that the key to making that happen is an expansion of the hydrogen fuelling network.

"We see hydrogen-electric vehicles as a meaningful complement to e-mobility, even with something of a time lag," Zipse said. BMW said that its iX5 Hydrogen test vehicle, with a range of 500 km (310 miles) and an ability to refuel in 3-4 minutes, was being tested in various countries.

Zipse said that he views e-fuels as having the biggest impact on decarbonising transport if used in existing car fleets, rather than in new cars as was being discussed in Europe. He said, “The main impact of e-fuels is on existing fleets, not in the regulation of new vehicles being hotly discussed in Europe.”