THE Volkswagen Group is planning to invest almost £160 billion pounds in electric vehicle development in the next four years as it sets out to become the leading global EV brand.

As the group posted a profit of almost £20 billion for 2022 - up 13 per cent on the previous year - its chief executive Oliver Blume said VW had ‘clear and ambitious' targets.

The group remains the BEV segment market leader in Europe and continues to grow in China and sold a total of 193,200 all-electric ID.4 and ID.5 models last year alongside 76,600 smaller ID.3s and 53,700 Skoda Enyaq iVs.

It has just announced a gigafactory in Canada to produce batteries and a factory in the United States to build electric off-roaders and SUVs.

By 2025 every fifth vehicle sold worldwide is expected be one with an all-electric drive and VW will be launching a number of new EVs this year including a new ID.3, the ID.7, ID. Buzz Long Wheel Base, Cupra Tavascan and Audi Q8 e-tron.

The group said that with the launch of these new models, it aims to reach a BEV share of around 10 per cent of total deliveries in 2023.

Arno Antlitz, Volkswagen Group chief operating officer, said:"FY22 has impressively demonstrated the robustness of our business model.

"Under challenging conditions, we delivered 572,100 BEVs and increased our overall revenues and operating profits. FY23 will be no less challenging in view of the overall economic developments. Nevertheless, our strong brands, with their convincing product offerings and the order backlog of around 1.8 million vehicles allow us to look ahead to FY23 with confidence."

The Volkswagen Group operates a number of major car companies throughout the world including VW, Audi, SEAT, Cupra, Skoda, Lamborghini and Bentley.