Porsche to delay electric car transition amid driver hesitance - ‘It’s taking longer than we thought’

EV roll out delayed due to market reluctance

PORSCHE
Hemma Visavadia

By Hemma Visavadia


Published: 23/07/2024

- 14:03

Luxury car brand needs 'more time' for driver interest to peak

Luxury car brand Porsche has delayed its transition to all-electric cars after admitting to needing “more time”.

On Monday, the German car brand said it was extending its deadline to become fully electric having previously committed to a 2030 date.


Porsche hoped to have at least 80 per cent of new sales all-electric by 2030, but due to market volatility and reluctance to purchase an EV, the company has changed its plans.

It has now watered down its original goal by tying it “explicitly to customer demand and developments in the electromobility sector” Reuters detailed.

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A Porsche driving over the Congestion Charge logo

Porsche cited poor market interest in electric cars as reason for slow progress

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In a statement, Porsche said: “The transition to electric cars is taking longer than we thought five years ago," Porsche said in a statement.

"Our product strategy is set up such that we could deliver over 80 per cent of our vehicles as all electric in 2030 - dependent on customer demand and the development of electromobility."

Porsche added in response to the delay that its double strategy is “more important than ever”.

The carmaker is not the only brand to delay its electric vehicle promise due to the lack of consumer interest.

Last month, BMW announced it would be stepping away from its electric car commitments after being unable to deliver enough batteries on time.

The car brand has cancelled its £2.5billion electric vehicle battery cells order with Northvolt.

The partnership with Northvolt has been in the works since 2020, but the Swedish brand said it was unable to deliver on its lithium battery contract.

The battery cells were supposed to have been produced in Europe at the Northvolt gigafactory which was hoped to be functioning by 2024.

A BMW spokesperson told German media Handelsblatt at the time: “Northvolt and the BMW Group have jointly decided to focus Northvolt’s activities on the goal of developing next-generation battery cells.

“The BMW Group continues to have a strong interest in establishing a high-performance manufacturer of circular and sustainable battery cells in Europe.”

Andreas Wendt, member of the board at BMW said the car brand hoped to have 25 electrified models on the roads by 2023.

However, Bernd Körber, product boss at BMW, revealed that the brand plans on keeping petrol and diesel cars on the roads in the coming years.

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Porsche Cayman

Porsche hoped to have 80 per cent of its fleet electric by 2030

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Data from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association found that registrations of electric vehicles dropped to 114,308 units.

According to Transport and Environment, the EV sales slump has been anticipated for a long time, but experts predict that registrations will increase from next year when EU car emissions targets are introduced.

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