Record year for Cupra and Kiti – with new models appearing

VW’s Spanish subsidiary presented its business results for 2023 and its strategy for the coming years in Barcelona. According to a press release, the company achieved a record operating profit of 625 million euros last year according to international accounting standards (IFRS), which represents a significant increase of 592 million euros compared to the previous year (2022: euros 33 million). It was also known what would come next for the Cupra Formentor: the next version should be fully electric.

According to the announcement, the strong annual results are accompanied by an improvement in sales revenue of 4.1 percent – from 0.3 percent to 4.4 percent. Annual sales also reached a historic value: 14.33 billion euros, which is 31 percent more than in 2022 (10.94 billion euros). “We had a year where Seat SA achieved the best financial results in its 73-year history, ensuring that our company continues its path towards a more profitable future”Said Wayne Griffiths, Managing Director of Seat and Cupra – and continued: “2023 has been a year of great change for the automotive industry and for our company: we continued to navigate a sea of ​​uncertainty while at the same time undergoing the biggest change in our history.”

The success of the business can be attributed to the strength of supply chains after various and well-known international crises in recent years. Seat delivered a total of 519,200 vehicles in 2023 (2022: 385,600), which corresponds to an increase of 35.3 percent. The Cupra brand once again achieved a record high with 230,700 deliveries – 50.9 percent more than in 2022 (152,900). With 288,400 deliveries, the Seat brand recorded an increase of 24 percent (2022: 232,700) and thus also strong growth.

New Formentor will be completely electric

David Powels, Chief Financial and IT Officer at Seat SA, said: “In 2023, Seat SA took a big step in its transformation journey: we wanted to improve significantly, and we succeeded. We have achieved new record levels in sales, operating profit and cash flow. The basis of this was the growth of the Cupra volume, the revival of the Seat brand volume and the progress we have made with our efficiency program.

The Cupra brand has therefore continued to be a driving force in the ongoing transformation of the VW subsidiary. A major product breach has been announced for this year. This year will see the launch of the Cupra Tavascan, the brand’s second electric model, and the Cupra Terramar, an electric SUV. The brand has also announced new and updated versions of its Leon and Formentor models, which will be presented soon.

The Cupra Formentor, which is currently available as a plug-in hybrid, will be a new version of the electric car in the coming years. As British trade magazine Autocar reports, the coupé crossover will be on an electric platform by the end of this decade, driving the brand’s success in North America. Speaking to Autocar, Griffiths said that this will be the most important car for the company. The upcoming VW SSP platform will probably be used for the car. However, it was not clear if the Formentor would only be offered as a full electric version or if there would still be versions with combustion engine technology.

Quelle: Coach – “The next-generation Cupra Formentor will switch to electric power” / Kiti – press release from March 21, 2024