[Image: FMT]
If you’ve experienced the guttural purr of a 911, you’ll welcome Porsche’s decision to double down on petrol with an €800 million (R15 billion) into its combustion engine.
The decision comes after Porsche’s EV sales stumbled, with specifically Taycan deliveries plunging 49% in 2024.
Porsche quietly abandoned its goal of 80% electric vehicle sales by 2030, and the company is now exploring new combustion engine projects. The move goes against most car manufacturers’ net zero ambitions as well as the UK’s Zero Emission Vehicle mandate which would require all new car sales to be electric by 2035.
The Chinese have also begun to eat into the EV market, and with Chinese EV makers gaining ground, Porsche is doubling down on petrol.
Porsche told investors on Thursday that it expected a profit margin of just 10%-12% this year and would take an €800m hit to profits to launch new combustion engine and plug-in hybrid models.
“We see this as P911’s last shot to prove they can turn around this business before losing more trust of long-term shareholders.”
Porsche, which made its stock market debut in 2022 and was valued higher than its parent company Volkswagen, has fallen from grace since then, struggling to get electric vehicle (EV) sales off the ground. The company also confirmed it was in talks to end the contracts of its CFO and sales chief early as they were heavily criticised for the company’s lacklustre performance.
While Volkswagen owns 75% of the carmaker’s stock, an investment firm controlled by the Piech and Porsche families, Porsche SE, owns slightly more than 12.5%. Porsche SE is also Volkswagen’s largest shareholder.
[Source: BusinessLive]
