Today, Volvo Cars announced the official start of series production of its all-new Volvo EX90 model at its factory outside Charleston, South Carolina. The long-awaited electric three-row SUV, based on the Scalable Product Architecture 2 (SPA2) platform, will enter the market in the second half of this year.
The first customer-bound EX90 happens to be Denim Blue one, destined for a customer in the United States. The American-built model will be also exported to other global markets.
Local production in the U.S. will be crucial to secure access to the $7,500 federal tax credit, at least for the versions offered under the $80,000 price cap for the incentive.
According to the earlier announcement, the Volvo EX90 will start at an MSRP of $76,695 plus a $1,295 destination charge. There are 6- and 7-seat versions of the SUV, all equipped with a dual-motor, all-wheel drive powertrain and a 111-kilowatt-hour battery.
The factory outside Charleston, South Carolina is the first one operated by Volvo Cars in the U.S. It was opened in the summer of 2018 and produced the S60 sedan.
The combined production capacity of the S60 and EX90 is estimated at up to 150,000 units annually. Through a substantial investment, body shop and paint shop were renewed and significantly expanded. There is now also a state-of-the-art battery pack production line, the company says.
We guess that soon there will be separate news about the start of series production of the Polestar 3 model at the same site; see pricing details of that related vehicle here.
For Volvo, it might be a turning point of electrification in the U.S. where the company’s plug-in car sales were mostly rechargeable hybrids with only a small addition of all-electric cars, like the XC40 and C40 Recharge. Meanwhile, the market launch of the EX30 model has a lot more questions now, thanks to high tariffs for China-made EVs.
