Demand For Electric Vehicles To Slow Down, A Number Of Manufacturers In Western Countries Cut Production

Volkswagen ID.5. (Doc. Volkswagen Group)

JAKARTA - The competition of a number of manufacturers in presenting electric vehicles (EVs) has had a negative impact on the market. The segment is now starting to experience a global slowdown in demand and has a negative impact on a number of manufacturers themselves.

Investments made for technology development have exceeded EV demand, thereby increasing the company's chances of cutting development costs to avoid bankruptcy.

This was confirmed by General Motors CEO Mary Barra, who said that the growth of electric vehicles slowed down, resulting in uncertainty towards this segment.

"This is true, the growth rate of electric vehicles has slowed down, creating uncertainty. We will produce according to demand," Barra said, quoted by Reuters on Thursday, January 1.

The parent company of the Chevrolet and Cadillac brands has cut the cost of EV production targets due to slow demand, but the CEO will seek to boost sales of electric vehicles in the US with an estimated increase of around 10 percent this year.

This move was followed by competitors, such as Ford, who cut the amount of EV production as growth rates increased slower than previously expected. Previously, Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, had warned of a sharp slowdown in demand for electric vehicles this year.

In fact, the slowdown this month could have an impact on some companies that decided to withdraw plans that had been previously carried out, as an example made by Renault.

Recently, the French company canceled plans to register a special EV business, Ampere, due to sluggish market conditions.

Other companies such as the Volkswagen Group are also delaying plans to look for outside investors for PowerCo battery units as business prospects in the electric vehicle market fade in mid-winter.

Previously, Stellantis had announced plans to temporarily suspend production of Fiat 500e over the past few weeks from February to March. This is not the first action the company has taken, which calls its sales far below expectations.