In seven years, Volvo Cars’ factory in Ghent, Belgium, has produced one million XC40s (and derivatives). The car was Volvo’s first compact premium SUV and also became the first EV for the Swedes with a fully electric version. In 2025, it will be joined by Volvo’s latest small EV to date, the EX30, which is currently only produced in China.

“Today, we have reached a significant milestone in the history of Volvo Car Gent. I’m very proud of this one-millionth XC40/EX40,” says Stefan Fesser, plant manager in Ghent. “With our dedicated and highly skilled team, we follow Volvo’s electrification strategy. The proof is that we already produced 175,000 fully electric versions.”

Best-seller

Earlier this year, this fully electric version of the XC40 changed its name to EX40, following the strategy of streamlining the model names for electric cars. The last plug-in hybrid version of the XC40 rolled off the line last year, but the name XC40 is still used for the mild hybrid version, which is still in production.

In 2023, the XC40 was the second-best seller within the Volvo Group (after the bigger XC60 SUV). In Belgium, the XC40/EX40 was the second-best-sold vehicle in Brussels and third-best in Flanders for the first six months of 2024.

Almost two-thirds of these sales were EX40, making it the fifth-best-sold EV in the whole country. Together with the success of the smaller EX30 as a company car,  Volvo is third-best in Belgium in the fully electric market.

The EX40 is now one of five fully electric Volvo cars, and with another five EVs in development, Volvo aims to become a full EV manufacturer as soon as possible. “In 2030, we want to produce 90 to 100% EVs worldwide. If necessary, the remaining 10% will be mild hybrids.

Ghent plant

The introduction of the XC40 in Ghent began a new era for the plant. These last years, a lot of money and effort has been invested in Ghent to transform it into a worldwide export hub. These investments are being expanded to produce the EX30 also in Ghent as soon as possible and surely in 2025.

The EU import tariffs voted last Friday on EVs made in China are pushing Volvo to produce the EX30 in Europe, more precisely in Ghent. The sooner, the better because Volvo has already foreseen a large amount of money to pay for the additional taxes and not pass them on to the consumer.

The client who bought the one-millionth XC40, a teacher from Alost, has been invited into the factory to see his car roll off the line.

Management reshuffle

Meanwhile, the Swedish car manufacturer has announced an organizational change to its top management to increase speed and reduce complexity. The most high-ranking personnel change is CCO and Deputy CEO Björn Annwall stepping down.

According to Volvo, the new, simpler organization is “designed to increase simplicity, speed, and collaboration, and reduce complexity by flattening our structure in the Commercial part of the business, enhancing the responsibilities of the regions and empowering the employees closest to the customers to make key decisions. “

“In a rapidly changing world, we must ensure our organization can navigate a more challenging market. We are now regrouping our commercial leadership team to focus on making Volvo Cars even stronger with increased speed and efficiency,” added Jim Rowan, CEO of Volvo Cars.

Annwall leaves

This is probably the biggest of numerous personnel changes: Chief Commercial Officer Björn Annwall, also Rowan’s deputy, is stepping down. He will support the transition of the new organization before “taking his next step outside of Volvo Cars.” The timing of his departure is not specified in the announcement.

Annwall has had a long career in Volvo’s top management, including as Senior Vice President of Marketing, Sales, and Service, later Head of Global Consumer Experience, then Head of the EMEA region, and then Head of Global Commercial Operations.

From 2021 to 2022, he was Chief Financial Officer and accompanied the Volvo IPO. In June 2022, he was appointed Chief Commercial Officer and Deputy CEO.

“Over the past nine years, Björn has established a strong team around him that will continue the important work ahead, and I look forward to working closely with him to enable this transition,” said Rowan.

“I would also like to extend my warmest thanks to Björn for his tremendous contribution to Volvo Cars over the years, including the pivotal part he played in our successful listing on the stock market, advancing our shift toward electrification and expanding into new markets.”

Annwall responded: “It has been a privilege to be part of Volvo Cars journey these years in various roles. We have grown in sales volume and market earnings, gone from a private to a listed company, strengthened our brand and digital capabilities, built a strong team, and advanced our position in the premium market. Volvo Cars remains on an exciting journey in electrification and has an important role in the automotive sector in the future.”