Volvo announces hybrid plans

• Plug-in hybrid by 2012
• Uses standard wall socket
• Diesel and electric power

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Volvo has announced it will have a plug-in hybrid model on sale by the end of 2012.

The car will be developed in a joint venture with Swedish energy company Vattenfall and will be powered by both an electric motor and a diesel engine. Volvo says that carbon dioxide emission will be lower than 50g/km.

Volvo also says the lithium-ion battery pack that powers the electric motor takes about five hours to charge using a standard wall socket. The batteries will also be recharged using the energy created while braking.

Later this year, Volvo will also introduce a range of new 'GTDi' (gasoline turbocharged direct injection) petrol engines, which will be far more economical and greener than the units they will replace.