GM's Entry into Electric Vehicle Delivery Business... Highest Stock Price Since 2010 Listing

Electric Vehicle Delivery Service 'BrightDrop' Launched
Competition Expected with Rivian, Canoo, and Others
Delivery EV Competition Anticipated Following Passenger Vehicles

GM's EV600 Electric Truck [Image Source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] General Motors (GM), the largest automobile company in the United States, has announced its entry into the electric truck business.

Mary Barra, GM's Chief Executive Officer (CEO), announced on the 12th (local time) during the keynote speech at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2021 that they will launch the electric delivery truck service "BrightDrop."

BrightDrop will operate as a GM subsidiary starting in the second half of this year. To this end, GM unveiled an electric-powered van and an electric-powered cargo carrier called "EP1."

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

GM plans to deliver 500 units of its first large commercial van, the "EV600," to logistics company FedEx. The EV600 has a single-charge driving range of 250 miles (approximately 400 km), is internet-connected, and is equipped with various advanced safety features. GM believes this range covers the typical daily delivery distance of trucks. The battery is GM's "Ultium."

In addition to the EV600, other vehicles are expected to be used in BrightDrop. The introduction of autonomous vehicles utilizing technology from "Cruise," an autonomous driving technology company invested in by GM, is also anticipated.

FedEx estimates that BrightDrop will bring about a 25% increase in productivity, according to GM. Although the initial investment cost is high, the operating costs are lower compared to existing vehicles, which is another advantage. According to GM, other logistics companies besides FedEx have also expressed their intention to use BrightDrop.

GM estimates that the U.S. parcel and food delivery market will expand to over $850 billion (approximately 933.8 trillion KRW) by 2025, influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic and other factors.

With GM's entry, competition in the electric truck logistics market is expected to intensify further. Besides GM, Daimler, Rivian, Canoo, and Arrival are also competing.

The major player is the online retail "giant" Amazon. Amazon has already ordered 100,000 electric delivery trucks from Rivian. In Europe, Amazon is collaborating with Daimler.

CEO Barra said, "Many countries around the world are imposing restrictions on commercial delivery vehicles while struggling to meet the rapidly increasing demand for e-commerce," adding, "(The COVID-19) pandemic has only accelerated these challenges."

GM has set a goal to launch a total of 30 electric vehicle models worldwide by 2025 and to sell one million electric vehicles annually in the United States and China.

CEO Barra said, "We will invest more than $27 billion (approximately 29.7 trillion KRW) in electric vehicles and autonomous driving programs by 2025."

Boosted by the BrightDrop service announcement, GM's stock price rose nearly 7% on the New York Stock Exchange that day, trading at the highest level since its listing in 2010, in the $48 range. GM's market capitalization stands at about $68 billion, which is only about 8% of electric vehicle leader Tesla's $809 billion.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.