Porsche bets on combustion engines despite net zero
The German carmaker confirmed it would overhaul its product portfolio to include 'additional vehicle models with combustion engines or plug-in hybrids'. It scrapped a target for 80pc of its vehicle sales to be all-electric last summer.
The decision comes despite looming net zero deadlines in Britain and Europe which will
Carmakers will be forced to phase out new petrol and diesel cars in the UK from 2030 and from 2035 in Europe.
In November, Lutz Meschke, Porsche's chief finance officer, said he expected the internal combustion engine would be around for 'much longer' and that the company was considering adding petrol engines to some of its electric car concepts.
On Thursday, Porsche confirmed the move and said it expected to report revenues of between €39bn (£32.5bn) and €40bn this year.
Last summer, the Cayenne and 911-maker dropped a target to ensure four in every five cars it sells would be all-electric by 2030. The company, which is controlled by the billionaire Porsche dynasty, said at the time: 'The transition to electric vehicles will take longer than we assumed five years ago.
'Our product strategy is set up such that we could deliver over 80pc of our vehicles as all electric in 2030 – dependent on customer demand and the development of electromobility.'
Porsche is the latest carmaker to water down its plans to build electric vehicles amid weak demand.
Carmakers including Mercedes-Benz and Renault have scaled back their EV targets in recent months. Meanwhile, Bentley said it would postpone its plans to develop an all-electric range by five years to 2035.
Europe has seen sales of battery-powered vehicles drop over the past year as buyers remain cautious over high prices and range anxiety. A withdrawal of tax breaks for EVs in Germany also caused a sharp drop in demand.
The number of electric cars sold in Europe fell by 3pc to 3m in 2024, according to analysts Rho Motion, after years of steady growth. In Germany, the number of cars sold in the year to November dropped by more than a quarter.
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