TOKYO — TOKYO (AP) — Japanese automaker Honda reaffirmed its commitment to electric vehicles Thursday, saying it will invest 10 trillion yen ($65 billion) through the 2031 fiscal year to supply EV models around the world, including the U.S. China.
“Honda has not changed its belief that electric cars are the most effective solution in the field of small mobility products such as motorcycles and cars,” the Tokyo-based company said in a statement.
By 2030, battery EVs and fuel cell EVs will account for 40% of Honda Motor Co.'s global vehicle sales. and the company will have a global production capacity for more than 2 million EVs, the report said.
The so-called '0 series', a key part of Honda's EV strategy, will be an entirely new EV series created from 'scratch', CEO Toshihiro Mibe told reporters in an online presentation.
The 0 Series will be introduced in North America in 2026 and then rolled out globally, with seven models by 2030. In China, Honda will introduce ten EV models by 2027, with 100% of car sales in EVs by 2035.
“We will become a leader in changing lifestyles to achieve sustainability goals, and not wait for someone else to tackle them,” Mibe told reporters.
While there has been a slowdown in electric vehicle adoption in some markets, the move toward electric vehicles remains solid in the long term and will become dominant in the second half of the 2020s, according to Honda, which owns Acura and Civic sedans and Gold Wing Tour motorcycles.
Honda's determination to pursue battery and fuel cell EVs appears to contrast with domestic rival Toyota Motor Corp.'s more varied or “multiple” powertrain approach, which focuses on hybrids and other models that still remain engines available.
Honda is keeping hybrids in its lineup as it ramps up production of electric vehicles, ramps up battery production and makes them thinner, with a goal of zero accidents, Mibe said.
Of the 10 trillion yen ($65 billion) investment in the works, about 2 trillion yen ($13 billion) will go to software research and development and another 2 trillion yen ($13 billion) will go to establishing comprehensive EV value chains in key markets such as the US, Canada and Japan.
About 6 trillion yen ($39 billion) will go toward “monozukuri,” or “the art of making things” in Japanese, such as building next-generation EV production factories, electrifying motorcycles and developing EV models, the company said.
Mibe highlighted Honda's various partnerships, such as those in electric vehicle development and intelligent driving technology with Japanese rival Nissan Motor Co., which was announced earlier this year.
Honda announced Wednesday that it has signed an agreement with IBM to collaborate on computer chips and software for future vehicles to meet emerging demands for better processing and lower energy consumption.
“We are moving steadily and surely to be prepared for electrification,” said Mibe.
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Yuri Kageyama is on X: https://twitter.com/yurikageyama
