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Volvo’s New Plan Under Returning CEO Håkan Samuelsson

Håkan Samuelsson returned as Volvo Cars CEO in 2025. The company’s 2026 strategy targets regional products, electrification and stronger cash generation, while Klaus Zellmer is set to take over by October 2027.
From TheFinanceBase Team3 min to read
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Volvo Cars’ plan under returning CEO Håkan Samuelsson is to tailor cars and decision-making more closely to regional markets, keep electrification as its long-term direction while offering plug-in hybrids during the transition, deepen cooperation with Geely and tighten spending to improve profitability and cash generation. Samuelsson returned in April 2025, but he is not Volvo’s incoming CEO: the company has appointed Klaus Zellmer to succeed him no later than 1 October 2027. The strategy is an ambition under pressure, not a record of results; Volvo reported lower third-quarter sales in October 2026 and withdrew its earlier full-year outlook.

Why Håkan Samuelsson returned—and who will replace him

Samuelsson returned to Volvo Cars as CEO in April 2025, beginning a second tenure after leading the company from 2012 to 2022. The “new (old) CEO” in the title refers to that return.

Volvo’s board appointed Klaus Zellmer, then CEO of Škoda Auto, on 20 September 2026. Zellmer is due to take over no later than 1 October 2027. Volvo said Samuelsson and the board would ensure a seamless handover, so Samuelsson remained CEO during the transition as of the appointment announcement. Volvo Cars’ announcement of Zellmer’s appointment sets out the timing.

What Volvo Cars’ strategy is meant to change

Volvo’s September 2026 plan links four changes: regionalize products and governance, grow through flexible electrification, use more synergies with Geely, and shift from selling cars toward complete customer offers. It aims for an EBIT margin above 8% and strong cash flow. Those are company targets, not achieved financial results. Volvo’s strategy announcement describes the roadmap.

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Regional products instead of one uniform lineup

Volvo says it plans 13 new electrified cars tailored to regions: seven intended for Western markets and six China-specific models. For Western launches, the company says it can reuse investments in its SPA2 and SPA3 platforms. In China, it plans to draw on shared platforms, a China software stack, common parts and a shared supply chain.

Volvo estimates parts commonality could reach around 30% by 2030, up from 10% currently, and says the increase could contribute approximately 5% in material-cost savings by that year. These are forward-looking company estimates, not savings already reported. Regional tailoring may help the company adapt its offer to local conditions while sharing more underlying components, but the announced figures do not establish how much of the expected savings will ultimately be realized.

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Electrification with a transition role for plug-in hybrids

Samuelsson’s stated long-term direction is electric. At Volvo’s 2026 annual general meeting, he said, “My answer is very clear: our future is electric.” He described a complete fully electric portfolio, complemented by plug-in hybrids for customers who still cannot charge. That is Volvo’s explanation for retaining a hybrid option during the transition; it is not a claim that hybrids suit every driver or market.

Samuelsson said battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) plus plug-in hybrids accounted for approximately 46% of Volvo Cars’ sales, a company-reported figure in his 2026 shareholder remarks. It should not be read as an independently verified market statistic or as the share of fully electric cars alone. The strategy announcement continues a direction Volvo had outlined in November 2025, when the company called electrification its main growth driver and highlighted the EX60, Geely sourcing synergies, lower indirect costs and lower investment levels. The 2026 roadmap elaborates the regional product approach.

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Cost control and Geely cooperation

Samuelsson told shareholders that Volvo’s SEK 18 billion cost-and-cash action plan covered personnel and other expenses, material costs, joint sourcing opportunities with Geely, working capital and an investment review. He said the program took full effect during 2025, earlier than the original schedule extending into 2026. The 2025 strategy announcement had also highlighted the plan alongside lower investment levels and indirect cost reductions. The amount describes the company’s announced program, not a guaranteed saving or a recurring annual benefit. Volvo’s 2026 strategy update and its November 2025 strategy statement provide the company’s account of the plans.

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What the latest sales update says about the challenge

On 2 October 2026, Volvo reported 141,609 global sales in the third quarter, down 10.7% year over year. The company also said a more challenging market and weaker near-term outlook meant it would not meet its earlier full-year 2026 volume and cash-flow outlook. Volvo’s Q3 sales and outlook update documents the figures and withdrawal.

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The update shows that Volvo faces immediate commercial pressure while pursuing its longer-term plan. It does not, on its own, establish which strategic measures caused the sales decline or whether the new plan will reverse it. The targets, savings estimates and planned launches remain forward-looking, so investors and other readers should distinguish them from reported performance.

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