
TOKYO -- Recent earnings conferences and announcements from big Japanese automakers have unveiled sharp divergences in their expected roads to electrification, with differing emphases on hybrid technology amid tightening global regulations that mostly prioritize electric vehicles.
Toyota Motor aims to sell 8 million electrified vehicles in 2030, with three-quarters of them hybrid or plug-in hybrid vehicles and the rest relying on batteries or fuel cells. The Japanese auto giant argues that hybrids will continue to contribute to decarbonization given challenges to EVs ranging from high cost to a lack of charging stations.