Can GM electric vehicles turn a profit by 2025? Mary Barra is betting on it
General Motors (GM) EV push will soon pay off. GM investors are gearing up for an update from CEO Mary Barra this week that includes a mention of the automaker turning a profit on its electric vehicles in 2025.
As the race to claim EV market share heats up, many automakers are taking significant losses to scale production. For example, Rivian posted a negative gross profit of nearly $1 billion in the third quarter as the young EV maker builds its manufacturing capabilities.
Meanwhile, the company made a comment in its Q3 letter to shareholders that resonates across the industry with the electric vehicle transition underway, stating:
As we produce vehicles at low volumes on production lines designed for higher volumes, we have and will continue to experience negative gross profit related to labor, depreciation, and overhead costs.
Start-ups and legacy automakers look to mirror the success Tesla is having with pure EV models. Tesla’s automotive gross profit (percent of profit of each new vehicle sale) was 27.9% in Q3.
Meanwhile, although GM’s revenue reached a record $41.9 billion in Q3, its margins were much lower, and even more so with its electric vehicles.
GM posted automotive revenue of $38.7 billion, yet the cost to make and sell these vehicles reached $35.6 billion, for a gross profit of $3.1 billion or just over 8%.
As GM scales EV production, the company expects to continue taking a loss in that segment. However, by 2025, the automaker expects this to change – this is the same year Mary Barra is confident GM will catch Tesla, when the company is set to turn a profit on its electric vehicles.
GM to earn a profit on electric vehicles in 2025
According to a report from Bloomberg, sources familiar with the matter claim GM is planning to update investors on November 17 (GM Investor Day) that the company expects its electric vehicles will turn a profit in 2025.
Mary Barra will discuss the automaker’s battery investments and how it plans to build the program. However, with GM’s plans to provide an “EV for everyone” on its way to becoming one of the largest electric vehicle makers, investors are eagerly awaiting how GM will do so profitably.
Well, according to sources who did not want to be named because the presentation is not yet public, 2025 will likely be the year GM will make electric vehicles for a profit.
After several years of building its production capabilities and supporting supply chains, GM is ready to start earning a profit on its EVs. GM, together with LG, have four battery plants coming online in the US, with at least three by 2024.
With several highly anticipated EV models coming from GM next year, including the $30,000 Chevy Equinox EV and electric Silverado pickup, the automaker expects to significantly ramp production volume.
At the same time, GM still expects its electric vehicles to generate lower margins than their ICE counterparts as supply chains and production ability transitions over. David Whiston, a Morningstar analyst, commented, stating:
GM won’t sell at the prices of Teslas, so maybe they won’t match the profits. But they should be able to show good margins. If Tesla can do it, there’s no reason GM, Ford and others can’t do it. They’re just behind on product lineup and manufacturing.
Mary Barra said on the company’s Q3 earnings call this week’s investor update will “go deeper into the second phase of our EV growth strategy.” Stay tuned for updates!
Electrek’s Take
I would expect GM to start generating a profit on its electric vehicles by 2025, with the company going all in on electric. However – and this is big – it will also be costly for GM to wind down sales and operations of its ICE vehicles.
New and used gas-powered vehicles will likely continue seeing their prices drop as electric vehicles gain market share. As electric vehicles and the supporting infrastructure becomes cheaper and more accessible, ICE values will likely fall.
Many automakers, like GM, have financial divisions that rely heavily on the residual value of their vehicles. If auto prices continue slipping, GM won’t be able to sell its cars near what it valued them, which could result in substantial losses.
What does everyone think? Will GM make EVs profitably in 2025? Let us know in the comments.
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![Enwin Utilities adds $1 million Terex electric bucket truck to fleet [video]](https://i0.wp.com/electrek.co/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/11/enwin_MAIN.jpg?resize=1200,628&quality=82&strip=all&ssl=1)
The Windsor, Ontario utility says it’s driving towards a more sustainable future after adding a dozen new electric vehicles to its fleet – including a state-of-the-art, 55-foot Terex electric bucket truck.
Based on a Class 7 (33,000 lb. GVWR) International eMV Series BEV, the Terex EV takes the eMV’s 291 kWh battery and adds the Terex Optima 55-foot aerial device and HyPower SmartPTO system to create a fully electrified utility service vehicle that can do anything its diesel counterparts can do while offering better, safer working conditions for utility crews.
“We’ve got 12 EVs,” said Gary Rossi, president and CEO, Enwin Utilities. That number represents fully 10% of the utility’s entire vehicle fleet. “Our centerpiece is our electric 55-feet bucket truck. It’s very quiet,” continues Rossi. “So (the truck) allows us, our crews, to communicate better. It’s not as loud in the community when they’re doing repairs in someone’s backyard.”
That notion is echoed by Terex, itself. The company says its HyPower SmartPTO (power take off), which replaces a mechanical PTO, avoids a loud idling engine while reducing workers’ exposure to toxic exhaust fumes.
The utility company says the new electric bucket truck cost it almost $1 million Canadian – but while that might sound like a lot, Rossi says the price is similar to what a similarly-optioned ICE version of the bucket truck would cost.
“It’s all about building Windsor’s future and literally plugging into the battery factory down the road that is being constructed and showing that Windsor is a leader on this front,” says Drew Dilkens, Mayor of Windsor. “I don’t own an internal combustion engine vehicle,” adds Mayor Wilkins. “I only own two electric cars. My wife and I, we made the change starting in 2019 and I can’t see myself ever going back.”
CTV News Windsor
Enwin says its commitment to clean energy extends beyond its vehicle fleet. The company recently unveiled a massive MW solar rooftop net metering facility at its Rhodes Drive headquarters with over 3,000 solar panels. The site, one of Canada’s largest solar installations, generates enough clean electricity to power 300 homes annually.
SOURCE | IMAGES: Terex; Enwin via CTV News Windsor.
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Built by Damen Shipyards and the first fully electric tugboat to be deployed in the Middle East, the new RSD-E Tug 2513 Bu Tinah put in its record-breaking performance took place at Khalifa Port during ADIPEC, the world’s largest energy conference.
The RSD-E Tug 2513 is based on the already efficient hull design of the standard, diesel-powered RSD Tug 2513, but its new, fully electric propulsion arrangement enables it to offer zero emissions operations in situations where oil or fuel leakage would be – let’s say especially bad.
But, while the “clean” aspect of all-electric operation is obvious, its Guinness World Record of performance shows that the Damen RSD-E Tug 2513 is up to whatever task its owners put to it.
“This Guinness World Record achievement demonstrates that the transition to alternative energy does not come at the cost of performance,” explains Maritime & Shipping Cluster, AD Ports Group, Captain Ammar Mubarak Al Shaiba. “We are very proud that the first electric tug in the Middle East is also making waves on a global level with this accolade and the fact that in parallel it is improving the sustainability of our operations alongside cost efficiencies in terms of overall fuel saving is extremely important. This vessel is now a key component of our Marine Services fleet and our electrification strategy.”
To earn its record, the the Damen RSD-E Tug 2513 Bu Tinah recorded an average high peak bollard pull of 78.2 tonnes (about 86 ‘Murican tons). The record-setting tugboat can undertake a minimum of two towage operation on a single charge, and can be recharged on a marine DC fast charger in just two hours.
Electrek’s Take
We’ve come a long way since 2021, when a 6MW electric tugboat was pulling about 50 tonnes of bollard weight. A nearly 50% jump in performance without a similar weight or mass gain is a sign of advancing technology – and we are here for it.
SOURCE | IMAGES: Damen.
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