Honda to Roll Out 30 EV Models; Invest $64 Billion in Electrification

Honda Motor Co, one of the leading automakers of Japan, has announced that it will spend 8 Trillion Yen ($64 billion) on research and development over the next 10 years to accelerate the electrification of its vehicles.

Honda has set an ambitious goal to launch 30 electric vehicle models across the globe by 2030. The automaker says that it will be producing about 2 million electric vehicles annually.

Toshihiro Mibe, Chief Executive Officer, Honda, said in a corporate presentation, “By no means is this the end of hybrids and the replacement of all hybrids with EVs. We will develop our current hybrids and use them as a weapon in our business.”

Honda said that it will allocate approximately 5 Trillion Yen in the area of electrification and software technologies to further accelerate vehicles’ electrification. This is the bulk of the total investment meant for R&D and separate investments.

The plan by Honda also says that it will build a demonstration line for the production of all-solid-state batteries with an investment of approximately 43 billion yen and further accelerate the research with a goal to start demonstration production in spring 2024.

Honda says that it strives to realize “the joy and freedom of mobility” by seeking a “zero environmental footprint.” It wants to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 and for this Honda will include the utilization of swappable batteries and hydrogen as well as electrification of automobiles. Honda believes that this will offer a variety of solutions for all of its mobility products according to how its customers use the products in various countries and regions.

Honda informs that it has also made some organizational changes to strengthen the electrification business. The entire Honda business now stands divided into motorcycles, automobiles and power products. It has combined the technology areas under the newly created Business Development Operations.

The announcement also reveals that in 2026, Honda will begin adopting Honda e: Architecture, an EV platform that combines the hardware platform and software platform.

Honda has recently announced a tie-up with GM to focus harder on affordable EV’s by 2027.