Mitsubishi Motors will be producing hybrid vehicles in Thailand beginning early next year, marking the first time the automaker will be making hybrid vehicles outside its native Japan, Nikkei Asia reports.
The Japanese automaker expects at least 10 years of strong demand for hybrid vehicles, as it believes that emerging economies need more time before a large proportion of their customers in these regions will be able to buy fully electric vehicles, which it attributes partly to high prices and partly to the need for EV charging infrastructure, according to the report.
Hybrid vehicles will, in the meantime enable Mitsubishi to compete with Chinese automakers, the report added. Mitsubishi will produce hybrid versions of the Xpander, while an upcoming SUV model from the brand, which is due in November, will also bring a hybrid model in the future.
Mitsubishi is also considering making its hybrid vehicles in Indonesia in order to leverage the supply of nickel resources for batteries from the country, Nikkei Asia continued.
The Japanese carmaker aims of have electrified vehicles comprise 50% of its global sales by 2030, and stop selling petrol-powered models by 2035, which lines up with the Japanese government’s move to phase out petrol-powered vehicles by 2035.
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