Corrects reference to 2025 targets in fourth paragraph
Japanese carmaker Toyota Motor plans to launch 15 new battery-operated electric vehicles (BEVs) in the global market by 2025 as part of its plan to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.
The 15 new BEVs will include seven of Toyota's new bZ (beyond zero) models. Toyota today unveiled a concept version of its first bZ model BEV Toyota bZ4X at the Auto Shanghai motor show in China. The new model was jointly developed by Toyota and domestic carmaker Subaru by taking advantage of Toyota's expertise in vehicle electrification and that of Subaru's in all-wheel drive technologies.
Toyota aims to produce the new Toyota bZ4X BEVs in Japan and China and begin worldwide sales by the middle of 2022.
The planned launch of 15 new BEVs is part of Toyota's plan announced in 2017 to offer electric versions of all its vehicle models by around 2025. The company at that time targeted to introduce more than 10 BEVs worldwide by the early 2020s, starting in China.
Toyota plans to expand the total number of the firm's EV models to around 70 by 2025, compared with 55 at the end of 2020. The line-up of 55 models ranged from passenger cars to commercial vehicles and consisted of 45 hybrid EVs, four plug-in hybrid EVs, four BEVs and two fuel cell EVs (FCEVs). Sales of such EV models accounted for 23pc of Toyota's global sales and totalled 1.93mn units last year.
Toyota last month announced a capital tie-up with domestic truck maker Isuzu to accelerate development of commercial FCEVs.
The imminent shift to EVs is further pressuring Japanese demand for gasoline. The trade and industry ministry has projected that the country's gasoline demand falls by 2pc/yr over the next five years to 726,000 b/d in the April 2025-March 2026 fiscal year. Gasoline demand is expected to rebound by 3pc to 800,000 b/d this fiscal year, compared with 774,000 b/d in 2020-21.
A cross-industry group of Japanese companies this month launched a new organisation to co-operate in developing a supply chain of lithium-ion batteries for EVs. Japan has pledged to stop production of only-gasoline cars by 2035 as part of its 2050 decarbonisation goal.
The battery association for supply chain has more than 50 member companies, including lithium-ion battery makers Prime Planet Energy & Solutions and GS Yuasa, and three carmakers Nissan, Honda and Mazda. Prime Planet is a joint venture by Toyota and Japanese electronics firm Panasonic.

