PSA Groupe will launch its first plug-in hybrid in 2019 as a high-performance DS model, it has confirmed, with eleven plug-ins planned to follow over the following two years.

Confirmed at the group’s ‘Innovation Day’ event, the French carmaker said it will develop plug-in models on two platforms – EMP2, as used by the Peugeot 308 and Citroen C4 Picasso, and the CMP architecture being developed with its Chinese partner Dongfeng Motors for global use in the compact segments.

The EMP2 platform will accommodate two and four-wheel drive plug-in hybrid technology, for saloons or hatchbacks and crossovers respectively. Both will use a petrol engines producing between 150 and 200bhp, paired with a powerful electric motor and eight-speed automatic gearbox, and offer a range of up to 36 miles to a charge.

Four-wheel drive versions add an extra electric motor at the rear axle, similar to the setup used by the group’s Hybrid4 models, and these will feature a slightly larger-capacity battery – 13kWh instead of 12kWh. Charging at up to 6.6kW, on the faster domestic wallboxes, will be available, which is unusual for plug-in hybrids.

Fully electric models will be offered on an adapted version of the CMP platform, which PSA Groupe has been developing for just over a year. These will target the B and C segments, providing a range of up to 450km from a 50kWh battery and ultra-fast DC rapid charging restoring 80% of the range in half an hour via a Combined Charging Standard connector.

As yet, PSA Groupe hasn’t confirmed which models will get the technology, but the first plug-in hybrid will be marketed under the DS brand in 2019 and likely to be found in the brand’s forthcoming crossover. Seven models, spanning Citroen, DS and Peugeot, will have plug-in hybrid drivetrains by 2021. The e-CMP platform’s first EV will also arrive in 2019, with four further electric cars across the three brands to be available by 2021.

Executive vice president, research and development, Gilles Le Borgne said: “These next-generation hybrid and electric technologies will complement our range of internal combustion engines, thereby enabling PSA Group to offer its customers a diversified line-up of technologies that meet all of their mobility needs. This innovative strategy clearly demonstrates the Group’s commitment to global, sustainable solutions that will allow us to take on the energy transition challenge.”