Aston Martin boss Lawrence Stroll has promised his firm will begin to produce all-electric models in the UK by 2025, ahead of the government's plans to ban the sale of petrol and diesel vehicles by 2030.
Aston Martin's boss hopes its brand will give it an edge in the EV market. Credit: Dave Adams / Flickr
Stroll, who is a part-owner of the firm, said that a battery-powered sports car and SUV will begin development at its plant in the Midlands and Wales, respectively.
Read more: VW set to "accelerate" shift to electric vehicles
He told the FT this would be operated in-house rather than relying on its partner, Mercedez-Benz, which owns a 20% stake in the company.
Several other automakers are looking into introducing new electric models into their development chains as many nations look to impose strict climate targets to meet with goals set up in the Paris Climate Accord.
VW recently announced a complete brand overhaul to allow it to push out a new EV model every year and to operate a far larger market share of the EV market.
Jaguar's Land Rover brand is also set to go all-electric by 2025 with plans to rebrand its current models to follow suit by 2030.
Stellantis is also weighing up its options for UK-based manufacturing, being unable to decide on whether it should invest in making electric cars at its Cheshire plant.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has vowed to ban the sale of all diesel and petrol vehicles by 2030.
This move has been met with positive reception from both other nations and key automakers.
Portugal has opted to ban the sale of all diesel and petrol vehicles by 2035, spurred on by the UK's decision.
Volvo's CEO Hakon Samuelsson has also suggested an outright ban on the sale of vehicles that operate using traditional fossil fuels, adding that stimulus packages encouraging the phasing out of fossil fuels may not be enough to spur the change necessary to meet the necessary climate goals.
Stroll has previously stated Aston Martin plan to continue the sale of traditional engines well into the next decade.
In the same interview, however, he pledged to increase the availability of hybrid models under the brand over the next four years.
According to Stroll, a hybrid version of Aston's DBX model is due to be rolled out by 2023 and its first battery-only models by 2025.
He added: “We are way ahead of our rivals, and all because of our partnership with Mercedes."
Read more: Aston Martin CEO to distance himself from inaccurate climate report
Stroll hopes Aston's unique brand will also give them an edge in the EV market and separate it from its competitors.
He said: "Every carmaker will be able to produce electric vehicles, but Astons will have our beautiful body, our suspension, our vehicle dynamics, our bespoke interiors."
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