FRANKFURT -- Continental will invest an additional 300 million euros ($326 million) in electric-car technology by 2021 in anticipation of a shift to EVs over the next decade.
The supplier is strengthening its electronics expertise as its customers including Volkswagen Group and Ford Motor raise their investment in electric and ultimately self-driving vehicles.
"Cars of the future will feature electric drives, which will be fully connected and automated," Continental CEO Elmar Degenhart said in a statement on Tuesday.
Until at least 2025, though, internal combustion engines will still account for most of the market, the company predicts, meaning it also sees opportunities for growth in fuel-efficient technologies that include mild-hybrid cars.
The group said it expected its powertrain business, which accounts for close to a fifth of group revenues, to increase its annual sales to around 8 billion euros this year and 10 billion euros in 2019.
Continental had said in January it was reviewing its powertrain division after earnings at the business failed to meet expectations.
Continental ranks No. 4 on the Automotive News Europe list of the top 100 global suppliers with worldwide original-equipment automotive parts sales of $31.4 billion in 2015.
