With the world premiere of the Volvo EX60 in Sweden — its longest-range and fastest-charging model to date — Volvo Cars has launched far more than a new electric SUV. It marks a strategic turning point for the brand.
The EX60 is designed as the cornerstone of Volvo’s next phase: a high-volume, fully electric model that reflects a steep learning curve after the challenging rollout of earlier EVs such as the EX30 and EX90, and is intended to restore confidence.
At the same time, it is meant to underpin Volvo’s European manufacturing base, including its long-established factory in Ghent.
Heart of the premium SUV segment
Presented in Stockholm as the electric successor to the combustion-engined XC60, Volvo’s global bestseller, the EX60 enters the heart of the premium midsize SUV segment.
It is the first model built on Volvo’s new SPA3 platform, an 800-volt electric architecture developed to deliver longer driving range, faster charging, and lower production costs.
After delays and quality concerns surrounding earlier electric flagships such as the EX90, the EX60 represents both a technological reset and a commercial necessity for the Swedish brand.
Ambitious benchmarks
Technically, Volvo is setting ambitious benchmarks with the EX60. Depending on the version, the electric SUV offers a WLTP driving range between approximately 620 and 810 kilometres, placing it among the longest-range electric SUVs announced by a European manufacturer.
Power outputs vary across the line-up, from an estimated 250 kW for the single-motor rear-wheel-drive version to well over 400 kW for the most powerful dual-motor all-wheel-drive variants.
The top versions pair this performance with battery packs exceeding 110 kWh and an 800-volt electrical architecture that enables ultra-fast DC charging at up to 400 kW, allowing several hundred kilometres of range to be added in under ten minutes under optimal conditions.
Need such a large battery?
Even the entry-level version is positioned as a long-distance vehicle rather than a city-focused EV, underlining Volvo’s effort to remove range anxiety as a remaining barrier to broader electric adoption.
At the same time, the reliance on very large battery packs reflects a broader industry debate about whether maximum range or overall efficiency and charging infrastructure will ultimately prove more decisive for mass adoption.
The EX60 will be available in multiple configurations, including single-motor rear-wheel-drive and dual-motor all-wheel-drive. Volvo will also introduce a Cross Country version, marking the electric continuation of a nameplate long associated with the brand’s more adventurous models.
In earlier decades, the Cross Country badge was applied primarily to raised, ruggedised versions of Volvo’s estate cars, such as the V70 and V70 XC, and later extended to selected SUVs to signal enhanced all-weather capability rather than true off-road intent.
The EX60 Cross Country follows the same philosophy in an electric context, combining increased ground clearance, protective body detailing, and suspension tuning aimed at rougher roads and (Nordic) winter conditions.
It retains the same battery technology, range, and charging performance as the standard model. It is positioned as a lifestyle-oriented variant rather than a specialist off-roader.
Next-gen software
Inside, the EX60 debuts Volvo’s next-generation software architecture, with deep Google integration, extensive over-the-air update capability, and the introduction of Google’s Gemini AI assistant.
This digital focus underlines Volvo’s ambition to compete not only on traditional strengths such as safety and comfort, but also on software and user experience, areas where electric vehicles are increasingly judged.
Beyond electrification and software, the EX60 also introduces a new generation of safety technology. It debuts an adaptive seat belt system that uses real-time sensor data to adjust belt load according to crash severity, occupant size, and seating position, extending a safety legacy that began in 1959 with Volvo’s introduction of the three-point seat belt into the electric era.
Beating the PHEV in TCO
Pricing is deliberately positioned to broaden the EX60’s appeal. In Europe, the model is expected to start slightly above 60,000 euros. In Belgium, early pricing indications point to launch editions beginning around 59,000 to 60,000 euros excluding VAT, with higher-spec all-wheel-drive versions approaching 70,000 euros.
Volvo’s expectation is that the EX60 will not necessarily undercut the plug-in hybrid XC60 on list price, but that it will increasingly do so on total cost of ownership (TCO).
In Belgium, where company cars dominate the market, lower energy and maintenance costs combined with still-favourable fiscal treatment for fully electric vehicles mean that an EV can already be cheaper over a typical four- or five-year ownership cycle than a plug-in hybrid at a comparable purchase price.
For private buyers, the calculation is less tax-driven but increasingly similar, as lower running costs, reduced servicing needs, and greater price stability over time help offset the higher upfront cost.
This logic is becoming central to the premium segment: rather than presenting electric cars as a costly alternative, manufacturers are positioning them as the financially rational choice over time.
Volvo’s approach closely mirrors that of Mercedes-Benz with the next-generation electric Mercedes-Benz CLA, which is likewise priced close to its combustion and hybrid equivalents to remove price as a psychological barrier and accelerate the shift to full electrification.
Facing the competition
This pricing places the EX60 squarely against rivals such as the BMW iX3, the upcoming electric version of the Mercedes-Benz GLC, and the Tesla Model Y.
At the same time, the competitive context in Europe is increasingly shaped by the rise of Chinese electric vehicle brands, raising questions about how Volvo positions itself in a market where Chinese manufacturers often combine long range with aggressive pricing.
Volvo’s answer lies in its hybrid identity. Volvo Cars is owned by the Chinese automotive group Geely Holding, but it operates as an independent European brand with its own management, engineering culture, and product strategy.
Vehicles such as the EX60 are designed and developed in Sweden and built in Europe, reinforcing Volvo’s Scandinavian identity, while selectively drawing on Chinese supply chains for components and battery technology.
According to CEO Håkan Samuelsson, sourcing certain parts from China can reduce costs by 20 to 30 percent, allowing Volvo to price its electric models more competitively without sacrificing margins.
This positioning allows Volvo to compete with Chinese EV brands such as BYD, MG, and NIO on cost and technology, while differentiating itself through safety, design, brand trust, and an established European dealer and service network.
The Belgian context
In Belgium, where company cars and fleet buyers dominate the market, these factors remain decisive. Volvo is not trying to undercut Chinese competitors on price alone, but to offer a premium electric alternative that combines competitive specifications with long-term reliability, residual value, and local aftersales support.
The hybrid nature of Volvo’s ownership also has strategic implications amid growing trade tensions. Unlike fully Chinese brands that rely heavily on imports from China, Volvo produces a substantial share of its vehicles in Europe, including in Belgium.
This reduces exposure to potential EU tariffs on Chinese-built electric cars and strengthens Volvo’s position as a European industrial player, despite its Chinese ownership.
Those industrial realities have become more explicit since Håkan Samuelsson returned as CEO. After declining sales, an ageing model portfolio, and waning investor confidence, he was brought back to steer the company through what he has described as an existential phase.
Samuelsson has been blunt in interviews, arguing that electric cars must succeed on their own merits rather than on subsidies, and that long-range, fast charging, and lower running costs are essential if electrification is to become irreversible.
Too many factories for Europe alone
That pragmatism extends to Volvo’s manufacturing strategy, with direct implications for Belgium. Volvo currently operates major production plants in Sweden, Belgium, and Slovakia, with combined capacity far exceeding its current European sales.
Samuelsson has openly acknowledged that Volvo would have too many factories if it produced only for the European market, making exports essential to keep those plants fully utilised.
Within that framework, the EX60 plays a stabilising role. Produced in Gothenburg, it is intended as a global volume model that can support exports beyond Europe, including to the United States.
For Belgium, the consequences are indirect but significant. While the Ghent factory does not build the new EX60, it remains a key pillar of Volvo’s electric strategy as the hub for compact electric models, including the EX30 and the 40-series EVs.
This represents an evolution rather than a rupture: earlier generations of the XC60 were indeed produced in Ghent, but the shift of the fully electric successor to Sweden reflects Volvo’s broader reorganisation of its European production footprint in the electric era.
Smaller EVs for Ghent
According to CEO Håkan Samuelsson, the long-term role of Ghent now lies in producing smaller electric vehicles at competitive cost and sufficient scale, including for export markets, as part of a more specialised division of labour between Volvo’s European plants.
The success of the EX60, therefore, matters well beyond Sweden. If the model succeeds in reclaiming market share in the fiercely contested midsize SUV segment, it will strengthen Volvo’s transition to a fully electric brand and help sustain its European production footprint.
In that sense, the EX60 is more than a new model. It is a test of whether Volvo can align technology, pricing, and industrial strategy at a time when the automotive industry is being fundamentally reshaped. For Volvo and for Belgium alike, the outcome will be closely watched.
