Photo: Volvo Concept Recharge
Volvo plans to build its upcoming crossover EV at its Ridgeville, South Carolina plant, according to unnamed sources speaking with Automotive News.
Though it doesn’t yet have a public name, the electric crossover is internally termed V546 and is expected to be the company’s third battery-electric vehicle (BEV), ahead of Volvo’s plans to go all-electric by 2030.
The electric crossover is expected to be between the XC60 and XC90 in size, and is set to be based on a new electric platform, along with featuring an advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) with semi-autonomous driving.
Volvo expects to produce around 100,000 V546 vehicles per year, with 40 percent of production taking place at the company’s North Charleston plant in the U.S. while the other 60 percent is built at the company’s factory in China.
Output of the Volvo V546 is expected to begin from the Chinese plant in late 2024.
On Tuesday, Volvo announced plans to invest over $1 billion into its Torslanda, Sweden manufacturing plant to outfit it for producing EVs, while also sharing details of a new casting process, similar to Tesla.
The automaker also announced a partnership with Sweden-based Northvolt to develop and produce EV batteries.
Along with plans to release only EVs by 2030, Volvo also hopes to move to online-only sales, similar to the sales model that EV giant Tesla uses.
