BMW has sold its one millionth electrified vehicle - including purely electric and hybrid vehicles - and plans to reach two million sales of purely electric vehicles by 2025, the German carmaker said today.
Around 70% of EVs sold so far were hybrids, board member Pieter Nota said in a roundtable with journalists.
He added that the company believed hybrid models would continue to play an important role in particular for customers without easy access to chargers.
Continuing to modernise fossil fuel-burning cars was another important step towards making the industry more sustainable, he said.
"Only then can we make a difference across the customer base," he added.
BMW has long stood for investing in a range of technologies rather than focusing purely on battery-electric cars to reduce emissions, and opposes flat-out bans on purchasing combustion engine cars.
The carmaker aims for at least 50% of global sales to be fully electric by 2030.
But it has repeated on numerous occasions that lacking charging infrastructure was a major barrier to quicker consumer uptake of electric vehicles.
However, BMW's stance on the ongoing use of petrol and diesel power has been criticised by Tom Spencer, Editor of the consumer advice website IrishEVs.
"It is gravely concerning to see automotive brands still promoting the idea of fossil fuel vehicles as a 'sustainable' option," he said.
"This is entirely at odds with the latest IPCC report which clearly and repeatedly states that we must reduce fossil fuel consumption at a rapid rate to sustain a livable world below 1.5C of warming."
