Italy seeking exemption from 2035 combustion engine ban for supercar makers
The Italian government is in talks with the European Union over finding a way to exempt supercar makers like Ferrari and Lamborghini from the upcoming ban on the internal combustion engine.
In July the bloc unveiled plans which would see traditional diesel and petrol engines phased out by 2035.
But yesterday an Italian minister told Bloomberg TV that Mario Draghi’s administration was seeking a carve-out for the iconic brands.
Roberto Cingolani, the minister for the ecological transition, said that there were “ongoing discussions” over how the new rules would apply to carmakers which sell far lower numbers of vehicles.
Ferrari sold around 9,100 vehicles in 2020, while Lamborghini sales numbered around 7,400.
“This is something we are discussing with other partners in Europe and I am convinced there will be not be a problem,” Cingolani said.
“Those cars need very special technology and they need batteries for the transition,” he added.
“One important step is that Italy gets autonomous in producing high performance batteries and that is why we are now launching the giga-factory program to install in Italy a very large scale production facility for batteries.”
Cingolani, a former non-exec director at Ferrari, said that sales of such supercars made up just a fraction of the European car market.
Lamborghini has committed to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 50 per cent by 2025, and is planning to launch an EV in the second half of the decade.
Meanwhile, the first zero-emission all-electric Ferrari will hit the market in 2025, the carmaker has confirmed.