General Motors Co. is laying the groundwork for a bigger bet on electric vehicles, telling investors at a virtual conference it plans to boost spending on them by more than a third to US$27 billion as part of a push to introduce 30 battery-powered models by 2025.

The initiative outlined Thursday represents an increased investment of US$7 billion and 10 more EVs than previously planned, including some that will be cheaper than US$35,000. The announcement comes as rival automakers plan dozens of new all-electric models, which could benefit from EV-friendly policy changes expected under the administration of President-elect Joe Biden.

GM aims to cut the manufacturing cost of its Ultium battery pack by 60%, enabling EVs to achieve near price parity with gasoline-powered cars by around mid-decade, Doug Parks, GM’s executive vice president of global product development, said at a Barclays auto conference.
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