The roadmap for 2020 is very clear. "We want to bring in exciting products to the market; ensure enhanced brand engagement and experience for our customers and spread our dealership network to increase our reach substantially. Also, our Game Changer electrified products will help us achieve our 2020 targets. We are intending to be leaders in the eLuxury (electric luxury) space," Frump says.
Volvo aims to sell one million electric vehicles worldwide by 2025. "Yes, electrification indeed is going to be the next big evolution in the global automobile sector. Volvo Cars has been a pioneer in the space. We were the first to have a diesel plug-in hybrid earlier this decade and a big step Volvo has taken is that from 2019, every new Volvo introduced globally will have an electric motor, marking the historic end of cars that only have an internal combustion engine (ICE). We are placing electrification at the core of our future business."
The year 2019 will also see the global launch of the first All-Electric Volvo which will also be launched later in India. Volvo Cars will introduce a portfolio of electrified cars across its model range, embracing full electric, plug-in hybrids and hybrids. This means all Volvos in the future will have some kind of electrification. "At present we are the only ones capable of executing this across our current and future range. We believe India would play a key role in contributing to our ambition of putting one million electrified Volvo cars on the streets globally," he shares.
With regards to the India portfolio, Volvo cars' strength has been SUVs and Cross-Country vehicles. "But with the S90 we have upped the ante in the sedan segment. We launched our next-generation XC60 recently. In 2018, we are all set to launch the New XC40 - a compact luxury SUV - that boasts of an edgy design and a host of intuitive technology that makes life less complicated," Frump says.
Frump believes that the ‘Game Changer' element for Volvo Cars would be an array of electrified cars that would be propelled by Hybrids, Plug-in Hybrids and even a Full Electric which the Company plan to launch in India soon after its global launch in 2019. "By 2020, our portfolio will be complete with our SUV, Cross Country, Sedans and Luxury Hatchbacks."
And while Frump's professional journey has been quite fulfilling so far, he has also found the personal experience of being in India quite wonderful. He is quite enamoured by the cultural diversity and culinary delights India has to offer. In fact, he's a travel enthusiast but has been keeping really busy of late because of work commitments. "But I look forward to many years of exploring this fantastic country," he says, as he signs off.
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