Volvo will become the first major car manufacturer to go all electric, with the Swedish company saying that every new car in its range will have an electric power train available from 2019.

The company said the announcement marks “the historic end” of cars solely powered by petrol or diesel and “places electrification at the core of its future business”.

“This is about the customer,” said Håkan Samuelsson, chief executive. “People increasingly demand electrified cars and we want to respond to our customers’ current and future needs.”

Premium car manufacturer Volvo - which is owned by China’s Geely - will launch five fully electric cars across its range between 2019 and 2021.

Two of these new cars will be in the company’s Polestar high performance sub-brand, which is being revived.