GM sets goal of offering electric-only vehicles by 2035, going carbon neutral by 2040
General Motors unveiled a new logo on Jan. 8, 2021, as part of it's "Everybody In" campaign to drive the larger adoption of more electric vehicles. Image via General Motors.
DETROIT (AP) - General Motors, the Detroit automaker making an aggressive push into electric vehicles, established a goal Thursday of becoming carbon neutral in both its global products and its operations by 2040.
GM has already announced that it will invest $27 billion in electric and autonomous vehicles in the next five years, a 35% increase over plans made before the pandemic. It will offer 30 all-electric models worldwide by the middle of the decade. By the end of 2025, 40% of its U.S. models will be battery electric vehicles. The company plans to include crossovers, SUVs, sedans and trucks in its electric vehicle offerings.
GM will source 100% renewable energy to power its U.S. sites by 2030 and global sites by 2035. That's five years faster than its previously announced global goal.
GM also wants to eliminate tailpipe emissions from new light-duty vehicles by 2035. The company will concentrate on offering zero-emissions vehicles in different prices ranges. It's also working with others, including the Environmental Defense Fund, to build out the necessary infrastructure to power its electric vehicles and to promote their use.
To account for carbon emissions that it cannot eliminate, GM expects to invest in carbon credits or offsets
The 112-year-old auto giant unveiled a new corporate logo this month to signify its new direction as it openly pivots to electric vehicles. It wants to be seen as a clean vehicle company, rather than a builder of cloud-spewing gas-powered pickups and SUVs.
GM scrapped its old square blue logo for a lower case gm surrounded by rounded corners and an ‘m’ that looks like an electrical plug.
It also announced a new partnership with Microsoft this month with hopes of accelerating its rollout of electric, self-driving cars.
So far, Wall Street has cheered the shift by GM which says the industry has reached a history-changing inflection point for mass adoption of electric vehicles.
Its shares this year have outpaced even high-flying Tesla, rising more than 20% to date. Shares rose almost 2% Thursday.