It looks like BMW's vaunted "i" division is going to face some intranational competition soon. According to a report from Autocar, Mercedes will unveil a new all-electric hatch concept at this year's Frankfurt auto show.

Autocar says this five-door concept will be a preview of a production model for Mercedes' new EQ brand, a nameplate aimed squarely at BMW's "i" brand. We got our first glimpse of EQ back at the sub-brand's launch at last year's Paris auto show, where Merc trotted out a new crossover-style concept. According to Autocar, this will become the EQ C, the first model under the new sub-brand.

Now, a new hatch concept called the EQ A will take center stage in Frankfurt, giving us a glimpse of EQ's "budget" model. Autocar claims a price tag starting around $45,000 when the car goes on sale in roughly two years.

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Not much is known at this point regarding the powertrain, but the report believes a simple front-mounted electric motor will turn the front wheels, managed by a fixed-ratio transmission. Autocar claims a performance-oriented model with dual motors might be in the cards as well.

Following the debut of the EQ C SUV and EQ A hatch, Mercedes has also trademarked EQ E and EQ S, presumably a mid-size sedan or SUV (EQ E) and full-size sedan/SUV (EQ S).