So said Volkswagen Group CEO at the Geneva Motor Show as he confirmed plans for the group to launch a further 20 models by 2020.

Speaking at the show, Matthias Müller said: “All-electric ranges of over 500km [311 miles] are feasible by the end of the decade. Charging will only take as long as a coffee break. And in the long term an electric car will cost less than a car with an internal combustion engine.”

At January's Consumer Electronics Show, Volkswagen displayed the first concept based on its forthcoming modular platform for electric vehicles, which it says will offer long range, affordable electromobility by 2020. The BUDD-e concept offers a 330-mile range, with 80% of its 330-mile range able to be restored in half an hour, but VW added that it could be as quick as 15 minutes by the end of the decade.

However, speaking at Geneva, Matthias Müller said that a concerted effort was needed on the part of industry and politics to open up the EV sector, above all with regard to setting up a comprehensive charging infrastructure so that electric mobility could penetrate the market faster.

He also pointed out that until then there would be a few more years when new drive technologies coexist with conventional internal combustion engines. “Our experts have developed fascinating technologies: from 3- to 16-cylinder engines, from natural gas to efficient diesel drives. And here, too, we can and will get even better,” Müller said.

Volkswagen also focused on the topic of digitalisation as it announced the launch of three new “Volkswagen Group Future Centers” in Europe, Asia and California that will merge design and digitalisation in a move to make Volkswagen Group vehicles best in class in terms of customer experience, interface design, operating logic, new interior concepts, and infotainment/entertainment.