GM To Bring Back Plug-In Hybrid Vehicles To US Market

(RTTNews) - General Motors (GM) plans to change its product-line strategy by bringing plug-in hybrid electric vehicles or PHEVs to the North American market, CEO Mary Barra informed the investors during the company's fourth-quarter earnings call.

Barra said that the PHEVs, which include combustion engines coupled with battery technologies, will be rolled out on selected models in North America, to comply with the federal fuel economy regulations.

Earlier, GM had started a plug-in electric vehicle line by introducing Chevrolet Volt in the 2010s. Later, it was discontinued in 2019 due to a lack of demand.

Currently, the only hybrid model of GM in the U.S. is a traditional hybrid version of the Chevrolet Corvette.

The change in production line is an attempt to steer clear of penalties related to the Biden administration's stringent laws on fuel economy and emission standards.

In April, the U.S. government introduced tailpipe emissions standards to push EV sales to 67 percent by 2032.

Further, in July the administration announced that it plans to cut vehicle fuel consumption almost in half by 2035. It proposed Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards which require automakers to meet an estimated 58 miles per gallon average fuel economy by model year 2032. It also requires automakers to improve fuel efficiency by 2% per year for cars and 4% per year for light trucks beginning in model year 2027.

Barra concluded, "GM remains committed to eliminating tailpipe emissions from our light-duty vehicles by 2035, but, in the interim, deploying plug-in technology in strategic segments will deliver some of the environment or environmental benefits of EVs as the nation continues to build this charging infrastructure."