VW reveals plans to make 22M electric vehicles in next decade

March 12 (UPI) -- Volkswagen will go all-in on electric vehicles, revealing plans Tuesday to sell nearly 70 different electric models over the next decade.

The German automaker announced plans to manufacture 22 million electric vehicles, up from earlier projections for 15 million. The goal is to provide mobility that's safe, cleaner and fully connected.

CEO Herbert Diess invoked the 2015 Paris Agreement, an international accord on how to address climate change, in a statement on his company's plans.

"Volkswagen is taking on responsibility with regard to the key trends of the future -- particularly in connection with climate protection," Diess said. "The target of the Paris Agreement are our yardstick. We will be systematically aligning production and other stages in the value chain to CO2 neutrality in the coming years. That is how we will be making our contribution towards limiting global warming."

Volkswagen plans to phase out gas and diesel engines by 2026.

The first models will be the AUDI e-tron and the Porsche Taycan. Both luxury models currently have 20,000 reservations. Future models will carry the Volkswagen ID branding, including an all-electric microbus. Battery maker LG Chem and Samsung are strategic partners for the transition to electric vehicles, Volkswagen said, adding it is considering manufacturing battery cells in Europe.

In January, Volkswagen announced it would invest $800 million in its Chattanooga, Tenn., plant where it will build electric vehicles.

Also in January, Ford and Volkswagen announced a partnership to develop electric vans and trucks over the next four years.

Volkswagen has been making amends since it was caught in a cheating scandal that used "defeat devices" on some diesel vehicles to skew emission tests so they appeared to be legal, despite actually exceeding carbon limits.