8 Apr 2019
The rubber industry will have to change at a much faster rate than ever before if it is to keep pace with the needs of its main customer-industry
To keep market-share – maybe even to survive – almost every car maker is now looking to severely reduce the impact of their products and operations on the environment.
Electric and hybrid vehicles (EVs) have clearly emerged as the weapon-of-choice in this fight and it is now becoming very clear how determined the OEs are to use it.
At the Geneva auto show, Volkswagen announced plans to launch 70 battery EVs over the next decade and to sell 22 million EVs by 2025 – up from a previous target of 15 million vehicles.
Similarly, Honda announced that all its new vehicles for sale in Europe will be battery-electric or hybrid by 2025 – replacing a previous target of two-thirds.
These are just two recent examples of what has become an increasingly strong signal to the market and its supply chain.
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