Skoda invests big on EVs
Skoda has announced plans to invest about €2.5 billion (NZ$4.2b) over the next five years on future technologies, with more than half of the cash being spent on developing electric vehicles (EVs).
The marque, part of the Volkswagen Group, predicts 2021 will be another challenging year for carmakers.
Its warning is based on the ongoing uncertainty over the Covid-19 pandemic and a semiconductor shortage that is affecting an industry already reeling from the drop in global car sales last year.
Skoda suffered a 54.5 per cent drop in operating revenues to €756 million last year, and sales revenue fell 13.8 per cent from the previous year to €17.1b.
Production levels also tumbled by 19 per cent over the same period but the company still managed to deliver than one million units worldwide for a seventh straight year, reports Reuters.
Thomas Shaefer, chief executive, says it is not time to completely switch to electric models despite the marque ploughing €1.4b into electromobility development as part of a five-year investment plan.
