General Motors Details All-Electric Journey

Some analysts are expecting a low range of 25% for electric vehicle adoption in the U.S. by 2030. GM predicts it could surpass at least 50% and is investing accordingly for the long-term.

A Nov. 9 keynote panel at the Fleet Forward Conference, “GM’s Holistic Path to an Electric Future," featured such inside details from Ed Peper, the U.S. vice president of General Motors Fleet, Steve Hornyak, CRO of BrightDrop, Michelle Calloway, director of strategy and growth for OnStar Business Solutions, and David Worthington, fleet manager of Santa Clara County. The group shared some real-world experiences and goals for fleet electrification.

GM is striving toward an over-arching outcome of zero crashes, zero emissions, and zero congestion as electric fleet vehicles lead the way in embodying the clean energy, data and smart safety amenities that define the all-electric future, Peper said, referring to the effort as “Triple Zero.”

“Transformational change is happening like we’ve never seen before and is underway at GM,” which sold more than 200,000 EVs in Q3, the highest ever, he said. EVs could exceed 50% market penetration by 2030.

In 2022, the pain point has been charger accessibility. To find solutions and meet future EV demand:

• GM is investing $750 million in infrastructure in the U.S. where each dealer will have 10 fast-chargers in their markets to increase adoption.
• It's also planning $35 billion in EVs/Avs and will introduce 30 new Ultium-based EVs by 2025. Under the Ultium EV platform, which is a modular EV propulsion architecture, batteries, motors, and drive units can all be reconfigured for all types of vehicles, from a small crossover to a delivery van.
• A new business unit, GM Energy, is providing energy management solutions that involve charging 360 for home and commercial locations.

Overall, GM plans to scale capacity for more than one million EVs in North America by 2025.

Calloway explained how telematics coming into the EV space can improve efficiency and lower overall TOC. “A big part of the EV experience is charging and how we use data to reimburse it and pay for electricity. The vehicle can be a source of truth to get reimbursement. As vehicles out on the road access public charging, how can we use vehicle and plugging so you can pull up and charge and it’s paid for on one integrated payment and charge solution?”