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Sony Corporation and Honda Motor Company have inked a deal for a joint venture and planning to sell EVs by the year 2025. The major Japanese companies announced late last week that they have agreed to a 50-50 JV, and the announcement made their deal official.
As per Reuters, Honda Motor Company only offers one electric vehicle as of now, and this is the Honda e. Since it only has one EV model, the company is apparently falling behind its automaker rivals, which are already releasing several types of electric cars.
It was noted that Honda has been slower with the shift to electric vehicles compared to global carmaker competitors such as Toyota Motor. Thus, it is under pressure from investors to build vehicles that are equipped with the latest technology while also being carbon-free.
With its JV agreement with Sony, Honda is planning to introduce at least 30 EV models and build around two million units by 2030. The newly-formed business venture has been named Sony Honda Mobility, and it is aiming to become one of the top firms in the electric car business sector worldwide.
Sony will be contributing to the construction of the EVs by providing its software and other tech expertise, while Honda will be leading the building of the cars as well as the marketing. Honda Motor and Sony will be investing 5 billion yen each which is around $39.52 million, and the JV is set to be headed by Yasuhide Mizuno, Honda's senior executive.
Mizuno will serve as Sony Honda Mobility's chairman and chief executive officer, while Izumi Kawanishi will be the president and chief operating officer. At Sony, Kawanishi is serving as the company's vice president.
"Honda continues to take on new challenges in the environmental, safety, and other advanced fields in order to be a driving force for social change through mobility, and 'become the power that supports people around the world who are trying to do things based on their own initiative,'" Honda Motor's president, director, representative executive officer and CEO, Toshihiro Mibe, said in a press release.
The Honda chief added, "We are very pleased to have signed a joint venture agreement with Sony, which has strengths in advanced digital technology and shares our desire to take on new challenges. At the new company, we will strive to create new value through the fusion brought about by the combination of our different industries, so please look forward to future developments."
