19:49 05-11-2025

Opel pivots to multi-energy strategy as 2028 all-EV target slips

Opel delays its 2028 all-EV plan amid weak demand and EU infrastructure, shifting to a multi-energy lineup and targeting a €25k Corsa Electric for city buyers.

Opel CEO Florian Huettl said the company’s ambition to switch entirely to electric vehicles by 2028 has turned out to be unrealistic. He pointed to slower-than-expected demand, as well as Europe’s lagging infrastructure and purchasing power, which together make the original target hard to hit.

Opel will keep pushing its electric lineup, yet it won’t abandon internal combustion just yet. The brand will stick with a multi-energy strategy, giving buyers a choice between gasoline and battery power. Huettl emphasized that cleaner technologies remain the priority, with the next-generation Corsa Electric set to arrive at about 25,000 euros. For a city car, that price signals a bid for the mainstream rather than a niche play.

He also noted that producing affordable EVs in Germany doesn’t add up financially because of high costs. As a result, models such as the Corsa will be built in Spain and Slovakia—an allocation that tracks with how European carmakers balance cost and capacity.

Huettl argued for more flexible regulation and reiterated that electrification is Opel’s long-term destination. In the meantime, upcoming models will act as a bridge toward a fully zero-emission range. In today’s market, that sounds less like a retreat and more like a pragmatic course correction, aimed at keeping customers onboard while the charging network and wallets catch up.