Porsche CEO doesn’t think supercars should be exempt from petrol ban

Yesterday, we detailed the words of an Italian government representative arguing that low-volume supercar makers like Ferrari and Lamborghini should be exempt from the European Union’s upcoming ban on the sale of new internal combustion engine vehicles.

Now, an interesting tussle has formed, with Porsche CEO Oliver Blume telling the press that exceptions like these should not be on the table.

Speaking to Bloomberg, Blume explained that electric cars are an unbeatable combo of performance and emissions reduction, adding that all car manufacturers, including Ferrari and Lamborghini, need to contribute.

“Electric in the next decade will be unbeatable,” he said. “De-carbonization is a global question and everybody has to contribute.”

Blume’s latest statements appear to be something of an about face, given his previous statements supporting the development of synthetic fuels, which Porsche will start producing in 2022. Of course, it’s possible for the CEO to believe in both electrification and synthetic fuels simultaneously.

“We believe that synthetic fuels produced with 100 per cent renewable energy have the potential to be an important element [in the future],” Blume said in a late 2020 interview with Hagerty.

“For this reason, we are conducting research and development activities. Seventy per cent of the cars we have ever built are still on the road, and for many years to come there will be cars powered by combustion engines.”

Porsche is inevitably better positioned for the electric supercars arms race than both Ferrari and Lamborghini. It’s already produced the Taycan, which by all accounts has been a smash hit. And going on the reveal of the Mission R yesterday, there’s likely to be more fully electric products on the short-term horizon.

Ferrari and Lamborghini, on the other hand, have yet to debut any full BEVs. Ferrari has confirmed that its first BEV will be released in 2025. Lamborghini has also said it’s working on a full BEV, but it hasn’t given a timeline for the model.