Volvo has confirmed the fully electric XC40 will go on sale in late 2020, as it re-brands its plug-in car range as Recharge.

Prices are expected to start at close to £50,000 for the new model, which will have a range of around 250 miles.

The manufacturer says the XC40 Recharge will be the first in a family of fully electric Volvos, with a new model planned to launch every year for the next five years.

Recharge will be the overarching name for all chargeable Volvos with a fully electric and plug-in hybrid powertrain.

To further encourage electric driving, every Volvo Recharge plug-in hybrid model will come with free electricity for a year, provided through a refund for the average electricity cost during that period.

The XC40 Recharge P8 features all-wheel-drive and a power output of 408PS, enabling a sub-five second 0-62 mph acceleration time.

The 78kWh battery charges to 80% capacity in 40 minutes on a fast-charger system.

There are little styling differences between the XC40 Recharge and a conventional petrol or diesel model.

Boot space is slightly affected by the presence of an underfloor battery, down to 413 litres from 460. There is a 31-litre storage compartment in the front, however.

To meet the anticipated growth in demand for its Recharge cars, Volvo will triple production capacity for electrified cars and will, as of next year, prepare a Designer’s Choice selection of popular Recharge models, offering the potential for radically reduced delivery times.

Every Volvo model in the range now includes a Recharge option and it expects plug-in hybrid cars to make up 20% of its total sales in 2020.

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