Traditional automakers grow electric portfolio

Bigname automakers are making strides in their electrification campaigns.

General Motors, the largest carmaker in the United States, unveiled the latest electric powertrain Ultium Drive at this year's Consumer Electronics Show, or CES, held from Jan 11-14 in Las Vegas.

Consisting of five drive units and three motors, the electric powertrain is expected to function for electric vehicles of different sizes and models, which will help the carmaker expand its electric vehicle production capacity and lower costs.

The GMC Hummer EV, set to hit the market in 2021, will be the first production model to be equipped with the Ultium Drive technology.

The electric mid-sized sport utility vehicle Cadillac Lyriq will be GM's second model to adopt the electric powertrain.

Besides the Ultium Drive, GM launched BrightDrop, an electric commercial vehicle brand, at the 2021 CES. FedEx will be the first partner of the new brand, the automaker said.

BrightDrop has two models, the EP1 and EV600. Both are set to hit the market this year.

GM has sped up its electrification to realize its vision of "zero crashes, zero emissions and zero congestion".

From 2020-25, the automaker plans to invest more than $20 billion in developing new energy vehicles.

Mercedes-Benz sold more than 2 million vehicles globally in 2020,7.4 percent of which are NEVs.

In 2020, Mercedes-Benz sold more than 160,000 NEVs worldwide, which include plug-in hybrids and electric cars. Its sales soared 228.8 percent year-on-year, marking a giant leap for the carmaker toward carbon neutrality.

Mercedes-Benz calls 2021 "the year of EQ", as the automaker is set to launch three electric models－the EQA, EQB and EQS－in China.

As the first model produced on Mercedes-Benz's large electric vehicle production platform EVA, the EQS can run more than 700 kilometers on one charge.

The vehicle will also adopt the automaker's largest and most intelligent display screen, the new MBUX Hyperscreen.

According to the automaker, the number of EQ models will reach eight by 2022.

German auto conglomerate Volkswagen is also pushing forward with electric vehicles.

It has unveiled a series of NEV models, including the Volkswagen ID.3, Audi e-tron and Porsche Taycan.

In China, Volkswagen delivered more than 52,300 NEVs in 2020, up 36 percent year-on-year.

The automaker delivered 231,600 electric cars in total across the world last year, up 214 percent year-on-year.

Volkswagen will launch 10 electric models under its five marques this year, including Audi and Porsche.

As scheduled, the automaker will phase out the production of internal combustion vehicles by 2040.