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• BMW says by 2023 it'll have 25 electrified models with half of them fully electric.
• In South Africa BMW will offer the iX3 and Mini Cooper SE as new electric vehicles.
• The Munich-based carmaker also confirmed there'll be fully electric version of its 5 Series and X1.
BMW's ambitious electric vehicle plans for the next decade will see the carmaker aim to have over seven million electrified vehicles and over four million with a fully-electric motor.
Under the electrified banner are plug-in hybrids and fully-electric cars, by the 2023 the carmaker says it'll have 25 electrified models half of them fully electric.
"The best vehicles in the world are sustainable. That is why premium and sustainability will be even more inextricably linked in the future. We are using our exceptional technological expertise in both hardware and software not only to make these vehicles desirable, but also to help reduce CO2 through them," chairman of the board of management Oliver Zipse says.
As soon as the end of next year BMW will offer five fully-electric production vehicles: i3, Mini Cooper SE, iX3, iNEXT and the i4.
The next generation 7 Series, the flagship sedan, will be available with four different drive technologies: with a highly efficient diesel or petrol engine with 48-volt technology, as an electrified plug-in hybrid and, for the first time, as a fully-electric BEV (battery electric) model.
Perhaps the biggest news of Zipse's announcement is that there will be all-electric versions of the 5 Series and X1. Again, it will form part of the four different drive train options available which include a plug-in hybrid, and diesel and petrol-powered version with a 48-volt mild hybrid technology.
The X1 is one of the carmaker's high-volume models, although it is not clear when the electric versions of the 5 Series and X1 will come to market.
Locally, BMW offers three electrified models: the i3, i8 Coupe and i8 Roadster. In the Mini stable, the Cooper SE is the most affordable fully-electric vehicle on sale in South Africa at R589 000, the i3 retails for R664 000.
The Cooper SE is set to be launched either at the end of 2020 or in the first quarter of 2021.
Image: BMW Press
