Skeptical, Honda Reduces Electric Vehicle Development Investment

KatadataOTO – Honda's electrification and electric car development plans seem to have hit a snag. Amid competition with Chinese manufacturers, Honda has decided to take a step back.

Reported by Insideevs, Friday (13/05), investment in the development of Honda's latest generation of electric cars will be reduced by 30 percent due to weakening demand.

“Seeing the current market slowdown, we predict that EV sales in 2030 will fall below the 30 percent we expected,” said Toshihiro Mibe, CEO of Honda.

By 2030, Toshihiro revealed that electric cars are targeted to account for 20 percent of Honda's total sales.

Photo : Honda

It should be noted that Honda's total investment in electric car development was previously 10 trillion yen (Rp 1.1 quadrillion). But that figure was reduced to 7 trillion yen (Rp 792.1 trillion).

It turns out Honda is skeptical about being able to sell as many electric cars as the ambitious target previously set.

Honda's ambition to compete in the electrification era began with the introduction of the 0 Saloon and 0 SUV, which have a futuristic design, using a different concept from their other eco-friendly vehicle lines.

Other models were planned to complete the 0 series, but they were apparently canceled after Honda announced a reduction in its EV (Electric Vehicle) investment amount.

Instead of that target, Honda is focusing on developing and selling hybrid technology and models that are quite popular with consumers, as they are more practical.

In Indonesia, Honda is also implementing a similar approach. PT HPM (Honda Prospect Motor) still sees HEVs (Hybrid Electric Vehicles) as a bridge towards total electrification.

“For now, we are confident that hybrids are better accepted in Indonesia. Looking globally, including Europe and the US, it's the same,” said Shugo Watanabe, President Director of PT HPM in Jakarta some time ago.

He emphasized that Honda is still looking for ways to make electric cars or BEVs (Battery Electric Vehicles) popular in the country.

Photo : HPM

“We already have the technology globally, it's just a matter of when to accelerate (electrification in Indonesia). But not now,” he said.

Currently, Honda offers one electric car model in Indonesia, the e:N1. Even so, it is not sold to the mass market, but uses a minimum five-year rental scheme with a cost of around Rp 22 million per month.

Meanwhile, Honda's hybrid models are more varied, ranging from the CR-V, Accord, and Civic to the HR-V.