The European Union Tells Carmakers Like Ferrari It’s EV Or Bust

The electric supercars are coming, and it’s not because carmakers like Ferrari and Koenigsegg have voluntarily committed to drastically reducing their carbon emissions, but because regulations in the EU are going to make low-volume car makers adhere to the same standards as the rest of the industry. There will be no more low-volume exemptions. Well, maybe for the lowest volumes, I guess.

So unless Ferrari and Koenigsegg (or Lamborghini, Bugatti, etc.) cut production down to precisely 999 cars by 2030, they’re gonna have to abide by the same rules as the big carmakers in the EU. These new regulations aren’t set to take effect immediately, but they are kicking in soon, in the near-to-mid future.

The European Commission is targeting much lower CO2 levels by 2030 and 2035, according to the Financial Times reporter, Peter Campbell:

These new rules are paving the way for the changes, which remove what the Commission refers to as a “derogation.” This is basically an exemption that applied to carmakers who sold fewer than 10,000 cars in one year, like makers of supercars.

These companies didn’t have to target lower emissions, presumably because their cars didn’t contribute to increased levels of CO2 as much as the big carmakers.

For reference, Ferrari sold 9,119 cars in 2020, which is actually less than the number it sold the year before that. In 2019, Ferrari sold 10,131 cars. The company’s sale numbers in 2020 put it within the range for the derogation, but that’s not going to fly by the end of the decade. Meaning, it now has until 2030 to literally clean up its act.

It’s still important to note, however, that even though these new regulations are a big deal, they were delayed by a couple of years. Mattias Schmidt, an analyst covering the EV market in the EU, said they were pushed back from 2028 to 2030:

Two years seems like a quirky little footnote, but remember that some of the countries in the EU haven’t always agreed on regulations. Despite the new timeframe, the changes are coming and with even more ambitious figures, as Schmitd said. The target reduction shifted nearly 20 percent!

Those ambitious numbers could be why manufacturers are now expected to contribute to lower emissions, regardless of how low their volume. It’s a good thing Ferrari’s derision for electric cars is going away. It’s great that the company is diving into R&D for electric cars, but its PHEVs are only going to get it so far now that the regulations are getting stricter. Bring on the BEVs, Ferrari.