Volvo has started production of the new electric XC40 Recharge P8.

The car is the first of several fully electric Volvos to come, and the start of its production represents a significant step towards Volvo Cars' ambition to reduce its CO₂ footprint per car by 40% by 2025. That same year, it expects 50% of its global sales to consist of fully electric cars, with the rest consisting of hybrids.

Customer demand for the XC40 Recharge P8 has been strong and, while order books remain open, every car scheduled to be built this calendar year has already been sold. The first cars are scheduled to be delivered to customers in Europe later this month.

The start of customer car production follows a period of preparation in which the Ghent plant has built a limited number of pre-production cars.

This process, standard procedure for every new model, aims to optimise the production flow and ensure top-notch quality of every car built. All relevant production staff have also received extensive training on safely building electric cars.