Washington - General Motors has announced that it is developing an electric version of its Chevrolet Corvette.
"We will offer an electrified Corvette as early as next year," said the Detroit-based car manufacturer in a statement. "Details and names to come at a later date."
"Yes, in addition to the amazing new Chevrolet Corvette Z06 and other petrol-powered variants coming, we will offer an electrified and a fully electric" Corvette in the future, Mark Reuss, GM president said on the professional site LinkedIn.
The current Chevrolet Corvette Stingray is powered by a mid-mounted, normally aspirated 6.2-litre V8 petrol engine, which produces 369kW.
The announcement comes as traditional carmakers are in a race to produce more electric vehicles to compete with Tesla.
GM has set a goal of overtaking Tesla in electric vehicle sales, and to achieve that, it plans to invest $35 billion (R560bn) in electric and autonomous vehicles by 2025.
Although very popular with major manufacturers, electric vehicles currently only represent a small percentage of total car sales worldwide.
In the electric sector, GM collaborates with Japanese car maker Honda. At the beginning of April, they announced that they would co-develop a new line of electric vehicles at "affordable" prices, with production due to begin in 2027.
AFP